Love Data Week
Calling all data lovers!
Love Data Week is an international celebration of all things "data"! Annually occurring during the week of Valentine's Day, we offer a wide-variety of events in-person and virtual to encourage all Indiana University students, faculty, and staff to consider the data in their lives. Hosted by ICPSR, Love Data Week occurs annually, with different themes designed to encourage researchers to consider different facets of data management, creation, and sharing. Learn more about the event, including previous themes.
Can't wait for Love Data Week?
Reach out to the Research Data Services team-- we offer consultations and workshops on a wide-variety of topics, including but not limited to:
- Data management planning
- Finding and evaluating data for (re)use
- Analyzing and visualizing data
- Integrating GIS into your project
- Publishing your data to receive credit for your work
Love Data Week 2026 Events
This year's theme is "Where's the data?" Over the course of the week, consider the different storage locations your data might go through, from collection to analyzing, all the way to storage and preservation.
At IU, we are also focusing on physical data. How do we make data with our hands? How is this different from a digital experience?
Join us for the following events to celebrate Love Data Week. Please note that some require registration -- so book your spot soon!
Interactive data visualizations, candy, and stickers!
- February 9-13: Daily, from 12-1pm in Wells Lobby
Principles of Data Visualization: A Hands-On Approach
- February 9: 11am-12pm in Wells Library
In this workshop, participants will build data visualizations by hand to deepen their understanding of how visual design choices shape interpretation.
Attendees will learn core visualization principles—such as scale, comparison, and visual encoding—to better understand how and why effective graphics communicate data. By the end of the session, participants will be able to identify key visualization principles and apply them intentionally when creating or evaluating data graphics.
Register for Principles of Data Visualization
ORCID iD Friendship Bracelet Making
- February 10: 11:30am-12:30pm in the Sciences Library
Join the IU Libraries for this interactive and drop-in session to learn more about ORCID iDs, unique identifiers for researchers that can help you capture and demonstrate the impact of your work. After creating your ORCID iD, you will be invited to create a bracelet with your ORCID iD number, complete with 3D-printed ORCID beads!
Registration is not required -- add it to your calendar
Maps that Glow
- February 11, 12-1pm in Wells Library
Ever want to make your own map? What about a map that GLOWS? Join us for this hands-on workshop where we will create hand-drawn maps, then make them glow with paper circuits. Participants will explore the cartographic design process through physical making and leave with their own light-up map that displays a place from their point of view. No experience necessary; all materials provided.
Public Access Publications and Data
- February 9, 2-3pm
Federal funding agencies increasingly expect that data and publications resulting from grants be made publicly available. But what does this mean for you as an author? Join IU Libraries for this webinar on public access requirements and compliance guidance.
Register for Public Access Publications Webinar
Sharing my research data?!? I know I have to but why should I?
- February 11, 2-3pm
Making your research data available is increasingly expected by funding agencies, academic journals, and professional organizations. Why? And what’s in it for you? Join Brittney Thomas and Mikala Narlock to learn about the reasons behind this increasingly common practice of sharing research data and what it takes to deposit data in a repository.
Register for Sharing my research data?!? webinar
Finding Social Sciences Datasets
- February 12, 2-3pm
There are thousands of datasets available for you to use and reuse in your research—the tricky part is finding the right dataset for your needs. This practical webinar will equip attendees with the tools and strategies to uncover high-quality, relevant datasets for academic research. While the focus will be on political and social science datasets, there will be useful information for all attendees.
IU is gearing up for the third annual Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Love Data Week Data Viz Championship. This unique competition invites students, staff, and faculty to showcase their data visualization skills and vie for the prestigious title of BTAA Data Viz Champion.
What is the BTAA Data Viz Championship?
The Data Viz Championship offers students, faculty, and staff a chance to showcase their data visualization skills. Whether you're a student exploring the complexities of a Fight Song Data Set or a faculty/staff member presenting existing visualization related to our university or your work, this competition provides a platform to shine.
How to Participate
Visit the competition website for full details.
Staff/Faculty
- Share the Opportunity: Encourage students and colleagues to participate.
- Challenge: Submit existing visualizations (image, title, description, and URL) related to our university or your work. Ensure that submissions follow institutional data policies and are publicly available on the web for the challenge's duration.
- Timeline: Must be submitted by January 16, 2026.
- Winning Opportunities: One visualization will be selected to represent our university in the larger BTAA Data Viz Championship, offering bragging rights within IU and the broader Big Ten community.
Students
- Challenge: Individuals or teams of two can participate.
- Timeline: Visualizations (image, title, description, and URL) using the Fight Song Dataset must be submitted by midnight on January 16, 2026.
- Winning Opportunities: One visualization will be selected to represent our university in the larger BTAA Data Viz Championship, providing opportunities to showcase your talent, build your resume, and win prizes from the BTAA.
IU winners will be announced the week of January 20. Voting information will be shared on the competition website when available. For more information or questions, contact lovedata@iu.edu.
Institutions globally are celebrating Love Data Week! Check out the events at different Big Ten institutions and from around the world.
And don't forget to love your data!
Contributors
