FAIR Data and Software Awards

To celebrate 10 years of the FAIR Principles, the University Library launched the FAIR Data and Software Awards in March 2026 to recognise staff and PGRs who have demonstrated best practice in making their digital research outputs FAIR: Findable (F), Accessible (A), Interoperable (I), and Reusable (R). 

About the prize

The FAIR Principles are key to openness and transparency, good research data management, and responsible research practices, yet a recent survey by the UK Reproducibility Network (UKRN) found that awareness of the FAIR Principles is still relatively low among researchers across all disciplines. The FAIR Data and Software Awards therefore aim to showcase and celebrate examples where individuals and teams have taken practical approaches towards making their digital research outputs (which may include quantitative or qualitative data, creative practice, software, digital media, etc.) FAIR, helping to raise awareness about what FAIR looks like in practice across different disciplines and research contexts. 

We encouraged academic, technical, and professional staff and PGRs from across the University to take part in the FAIR Data and Software Awards competition, celebrating concrete examples of how digital research objects are being made Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR).

Winners

Dr Romain Thomas and Dr Evgenia Dammer, 'STON: SofTware for petrOgraphic visualisatioN' (School of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering)

Case study coming soon.

Dr Joseph Nockels, 'Recognising Hands, Recognising Processes - eXplainable Automated Text Recognition for Scottish Spiritualist Newspapers' (School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities, Faculty of Arts & Humanities)

Case study coming soon.

Dr Dani Madrid-Morales, 'Beyond "Emergencies?" Reporting on Humanitarian Issues Around the World' (School of Information, Journalism and Communication, Faculty of Social Sciences)

Case study coming soon.

Dr Benjamin Davison, 'The SHeffield Ice Velocity ExploreR (SHIVER)' (School of Geography and Planning, Faculty of Social Sciences)

Case study coming soon.

Dr Lindsay Lee and Dr Tim Rooker, 'Data-Centric Manufacturing' (Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre)

Case study coming soon.

Faizhal Arif Santosa, 'Coconut Libtool' (Postgraduate Researcher, School of Information, Journalism and Communication, Faculty of Social Sciences)

Case study coming soon.

Runners up

Dr Sanjeetha Pennada, 'DT-DRIVE: A Tool for Deterministic Replay-Based Testing of Autonomous Driving Systems', (School of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering)

Case study coming soon.

Mustafa Onur Onen, 'Strategic deep-water observations enhance probabilistic parameter estimation of lake hydrodynamic models' (Postgraduate Researcher, School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering)

Case study coming soon.

Sylvia Whittle, 'AFMReader' (Postgraduate Researcher, School of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering, Faculty of Engineering)

Case study coming soon.