EPFL joins cross-disciplinary effort to advance FAIR image workflows
© Euro-BioImaging
EPFL joins a cross-disciplinary European initiative to promote FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) image analysis workflows, enabling scientists from different fields to share and reuse tools more effectively.
Researchers from EPFL’s Laboratory of Astrophysics (LASTRO) have joined forces with Euro-BioImaging, Simula, and the University of Bergen to launch a new project that aims to make image analysis tools more interoperable, reusable, and sustainable. The initiative, FAIR Image Analysis Across Sciences, is supported by the OSCARS project and was selected in its first competitive call for cascading grants.
Representing EPFL’s involvement is Volodymyr Savchenko at LASTRO, the group of Professor Jean-Paul Kneib, which is contributing expertise in astronomical image analysis workflows. The project fosters new pathways for interdisciplinary research by enabling the application of astrophysical imaging techniques to other scientific fields. It also supports the integration of datasets from domains such as bioimaging, environmental sciences, and astronomy to tackle shared research questions.
"Our contribution is with astronomical images and imaging workflows", says Savchenko. "We are using astronomical tools for analyzing images from other domains, and vice versa. Technologies and standards of Open Data developed (in part in grants we lead or joined) by Swiss Open Research Data (ORD) and the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) allow to easily interchange them. We'll also have cases when images from different disciplines are combined for the same science goals."
EPFL’s contribution builds on its collaboration on earlier projects such as EuroScienceGateway and AstroORDAS, where LASTRO played a key role in promoting FAIR research practices within the astronomy community.
The FAIR Image Analysis Across Sciences initiative will leverage platforms like Galaxy and WorkflowHub to develop robust, reusable workflows. These tools will be openly accessible to researchers worldwide, helping reduce duplication of effort and increasing reproducibility across scientific disciplines. The project also emphasizes sustainability and accessibility, ensuring that researchers worldwide can both contribute to and benefit from these open resources.