Hackathons as Methodology: Advancing Collections as Data Through International Participation

In an era of rapid technological change, evolving research practices, and increasing geopolitical and epistemic uncertainty, research libraries play a critical role in shaping how digital collections can be accessed, interpreted, and reused as data. This paper discusses the findings of the collaborative project “Exploring collections as data: a cross-cultural GLAM labs approach” between the Centre for Digital Scholarship at the Bodleian Libraries, UK and the Stabi Lab at the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, Germany. The purpose of this international collaboration is to investigate how and why different user groups interact with digital collections data. Expanding on previous exchanges between both institutions as part of a wider international initiative created in the wake of Brexit, the project sought to identify user needs and use cases to develop best practices and recommendations to advance the publication of collections data and develop responsive data services. Though working in different countries, and in an academic library in Oxford, and a State library in Berlin, we share common questions about the use and impact of our collections as machine-actionable and computationally reusable data, particularly in relation to emerging digital and AI-driven research practices. 

The use of collections data has emerged as an established mode of inquiry across academic fields, in artistic works and for citizen science projects. The collections-as-data project has led discussions around creating responsible and participatory data cultures in institutions (Padilla et al., 2023, doi:10.5281/zenodo.8341519). Yet as libraries and other heritage organisations create machine readable collections data and consider developing interfaces to facilitate access, user needs and requirements remain poorly understood. The publication of digital collections data, however, must be informed by an understanding of institutions’ user practices, shared standards and criteria to assess impact. 

The project “Exploring collections as data” uses a cross-cultural and participatory approach to address this gap and to contribute to a user-centric development of collections data and data services. Open data hackathons organised at the Stabi Lab in Berlin and the Centre for Digital Scholarship in Oxford attracted participants from a range of backgrounds, including academic research, creative industries and software development. At each event teams experimented with curated datasets from libraries and other cultural heritage organizations at GLAM Oxford and the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, producing prototypes that suggested yet unexplored use cases for the wealth and breadth of library and cultural heritage data. In doing so, they made visible practices for accessing and transforming collections data. Moreover, they identified gaps in collections data documentation, technical support and skills development. The findings demonstrate how libraries can exercise their institutional power by acting as enablers of access, mediators between technology and users, and stewards of responsible data cultures. The paper concludes by outlining how insights from this collaborative work can inform strategic service development at both libraries and offer transferable lessons for research libraries seeking to strengthen access to digital collections and knowledge in an uncertain world.