The 1st Stuttgart Research Software Day drew 180 participants on 2 March 2026. The event was held as a satellite to deRSE26, the 6th Conference for Research Software Engineering (RSE) in Germany, hosted at the University of Stuttgart, chaired by SFB 1313 project leader Prof. Bernd Flemisch.
Introduced by Bernd Flemisch, Uni Stuttgart’s CIO Simone Rehm opened, stressing that research software needs professional management and stable funding. She echoed the Software Sustainability Institute's motto: "Better Software, Better Research." In an impulse talk (link), Jun.-Prof. Benjamin Uekermann argued that simulation software must go beyond FAIR principles to also prioritize usability and long-term maintainability — qualities often neglected in traditional publication cycles.
SFB 1313 member and conference organizer Jun.-Prof. Timo Koch called the turnout a sign of RSE's growing role in academia. A participant’s survey conducted prior to the event showed two-thirds of attendees were Stuttgart-based researchers and developers; one-third came from other German and international institutions. RSE work was shown to span every faculty. Projects vary widely in size and development stage. Participants agreed on one key gap: the lack of permanent career paths and central institutional support for RSEs. With its plans for an institutional RSE-Center, the University of Stuttgart aims to close this gap in the near future. The day featured 60 poster presentations showcasing the breadth of Stuttgart's software ecosystem.
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Author: Timo Koch; License: CC0