OpenRefine in Action: Creating a New Tool-Based Primer for the Data Curation Network

Heather Charlotte Owen, Aditi Thite, Peyton Tvrdy

In April of 2023, the Data Curation Network (DCN) held a workshop about the CURATE(D) Workflow to better teach participants about data curation, cleaning, and sharing. At this workshop, the organizers encouraged participants to form working groups to create “Primers” for various topics. At this meeting, the OpenRefine Working Group was formed to create a primer for the application, OpenRefine. This primer was published in August 2024 and serves as a valuable resource for users new to data cleaning and OpenRefine. The primer introduces OpenRefine as a robust data cleaning, curation, and preservation tool, designed to empower users in managing evolving research data needs. This new primer is intended for data curators, researchers, data librarians, and anyone working with research datasets. This document is distinct as DCN’s first tool-based primer, and was therefore challenging for the project team to conceive and develop. It led to the creation of a new template which can guide users to generate other primers focused on tools and techniques. It includes unique sections such as “Getting Started”, “Prerequisites”, “OpenRefine Functions” and “Preservation”, and the “CURATE(D) Checklist.” The primer exhibits OpenRefine functions with detailed practical examples useful for both non-programmers and technical users. OpenRefine can handle diverse formats, execute powerful functions, and connect to external sources enabling curators to enhance data quality and compliance. The versatility of OpenRefine empowers researchers to strengthen and build resilience in data practices, promoting FAIR data sharing aligned with institutional goals. Through this presentation participants will understand the purpose of this document, its intended audience, how to use it at their institution, and how OpenRefine can be an essential tool for improving resilience and access during data curation. The presentation of the entire primer conception, creation and design process will also encourage users to create other new tool-based primers.