TRIPLE: Behind the Scenes #1: Suzanne Dumouchel

This new series on the OPERAS blog features individual staff members from the TRIPLE project team, to give a face to the people behind the scenes. What is their role in the project, what is their background, and how did they get in touch with the Open Science movement?

Suzanne Dumouchel (photo credits: private)

The first team member we introduce to you is Suzanne Dumouchel, who works for Huma-Num, which is a French Very Large Research Infrastructure (“Très Grande Infrastructure de Recherche”, TGIR) with international reach devoted to the Social Sciences and Humanities.

Suzanne, what is your role in the TRIPLE project?

I’m the scientific coordinator of the TRIPLE project.

What exactly do you do as the scientific coordinator? What are your tasks and responsibilities?

It’s not so easy to explain. I’m in charge of the management of the consortium and of the development of the project as it has been contractualised with the European Commission. In my daily activities, I’m less involved in the project itself (I mean related to specific tasks) – which is a pity because it is the most interesting thing to do actually – but I’m mainly devoted to ensure a proper coordination between the partners, to check if the different tasks are well performed and linked to other tasks. So I need to keep an overview of the project without forgetting the smaller issues we might have and which can have a bigger impact later. But actually I’m very lucky as the partners are really strong and devoted to the project. We work as a team and we work well. As a coordinator, part of my job is also to develop connections with other projects or initiatives which might have an interest in TRIPLE or which TRIPLE can benefit from.

What isyour background in terms of previous work experience and academic discipline,and which specific perspective(s) does that background contribute to TRIPLE?

I got a PhD in French literature and aminvested in the Open Science movement, especially in the field of the socialsciences and humanities (SSH). My main concerns are about how to highlight theimpact of SSH research for societies; as I think there is a lot of impact, butit’s not visible enough. I try to contribute to the visibility through my rolein the TRIPLE project and by coordinating OPERAS, a European ResearchInfrastructure devoted to SSH open scholarly communication.

Whydo you think is SSH research so important for societies?

It’s quite obvious in my mind. All thetechnological and medical changes have been implemented thanks to deep changesin societies. Progress can be made only if society is ready for that. It’squite well-known now that bigger evolutions come from the social sciences andhumanities but the impact is quite long. I mean it can change the way we live,but often only 20 or 30 years after the publication of a book or an article.Human, social and societal changes need a lot of time to be done, which is lessthe case for technology. This is why impact is difficult to evaluate butdefinitely it is a big one. 

Whatdoes an increased visibility imply? How can you ensure that researchers andcitizens realise the impact of SSH research?

Increasing visibility of science is not an aimin itself. It is a way to show what is being done and to open the minds to say“yes, this is important”. But visibility not a purpose. It’s more the firststep for citizens (and companies, public institutions and others) to understandhow this kind of research (i.e. in SSH) can be useful for them and how it canhelp to solve current issues. So by increasing visibility, we expect to developcollaborations between science and civil society.

Doyou remember when you first heard about Open Science? What made you get sopassionate about the movement?

It was quite a long time ago actually. I cameto Open Science from the Open Access movement, like the most of us I guess. Atthe beginning, I was quite young, I didn’t understand why it was quiterevolutionary. Not because it wasn’t but because for me, it should have beenthe rule from the beginning. Research is financed through public funds so it’snormal that benefits and access to research can be free for everybody. Ofcourse there are some issues related to copyright or business models ofservices for instance. But that means we have to find solutions to these issuesand not to fight against this movement. Open Science means fewer and fewerboundaries between individual researchers and research groups and betweenresearchers and societies, so this is definitely the way we should be doingresearch.

Whatare you currently working on in the TRIPLE project?

Currently I’m mainly involved in fourdifferent tasks: First, the creation of a forum to facilitate exchanges betweenresearchers; second, thinking about the type of crowdfunding platform that isneeded for TRIPLE and third, the preliminary work for the sustainability of theplatform. Last but not least I’m involved in the building of the EOSC (EuropeanOpen Science Cloud) as I contribute to two working groups (“Architecture” and“Skills and Training”), and I’m working to establish links between TRIPLEproject and the work done to develop the EOSC, which is not an easy task.

Suzanne’s home office space where she works when she wants to have a quiet working environment. At home, she does not have a fixed desk but works in different spaces. (photo credits: private)

How has the pandemic changed your working routines in the TRIPLE project?

We expected to have a face-to-face meeting inJune with the whole consortium, but the pandemic obliged us to cancel. Otherthan that, I have to admit that it hasn’t changed a lot our work within TRIPLE.Deadlines are met and our meetings are still very regular. However, we can saythat most of the time, at the beginning of the meetings, we share some newsabout our situation in our country. We include more personal discussions andhave reinforced the links between us. Maybe I can add as well that I investless effort in the way I do the meetings, e.g. it doesn’t matter if I’m outsideor with my daughter next to me or or if my hair doesn’t looks perfect ;).

A place where Suzanne went during breaks at the time of the strict lockdown in France when she was only allowed one hour outside. (photo credits: private)

Suzanne,many thanks for the interview!