Building a RSE Community in Energy Research

Research software is essential for scientific progress, as it enables researchers to collect, analyze, and interpret complex data, simulate phenomena, control and monitor experiments, and prove concepts. In energy research, software forms an important foundation. Energy research software is an essential research artifact for energy research and is therefore also covered as such by NFDI4Energy. In contrast to research data, the focus of research software lies in its management and systematic development, commonly referred to as Research Software Engineering (RSE), which encompasses both engineering and management aspects. To improve the handling and engineering of energy research software towards FAIR energy research software, NFDI4Energy is building a community on RSE in the energy domain. To this extent, first, we focus on networking on RSE topics in Germany and within the NFDI. Second, we work within NFDI4Energy to improve the knowledge of RSE in the energy domain. Third, we bring researchers together to discuss RSE-related topics. In 2024 and 2025, we participated in the German Conference for Research Software Engineering (deRSE), where we showcased our ongoing work within Task Area 5 of NFDI4Energy. deRSE, organized by deRSE e.V., provides a platform for networking, professional development, and exchanging ideas, serving as an important hub for advancing RSE in Germany. Additionally, we are active in the RSE Working Group within the Section Common Infrastructures of the NFDI, which connects experts across consortia and promotes interoperability and collaboration on national and international levels. Furthermore, we co-initiated a Working Group on Research Software Metadata in the Section Metadata, Terminologies, and Provenance, contributing to developing common metadata standards and infrastructure solutions. Within NFDI4Energy, we develop workflows and services to support RSE by fostering sustainable software development, improving collaboration, and strengthening ties to RDM. These efforts, which have already been well-received at our NFDI4Energy conferences, aim to build long-term structures that increase the impact of RSE in the energy domain and beyond. To improve the knowledge on RSE and exchange on the topic within our domain, we organized a workshop with 20 researchers from 13 different research institutions. In this workshop, we had a keynote from an expert in RSE and discussed different research software from the energy domain. Also, the workshop results were used to develop community guidelines on the engineering of research software in the energy domain, which is published as a preprint. Within our talk, we would like to present and discuss our steps towards a community on RSE in the energy domain.