A Data-Driven Approach to Monitor and Improve Open and FAIR Research Data in a Federated Research Ecosystem

Abstract

In this contribution we present a data-driven approach to monitoring and assessing the state of open and FAIR data in an interdisciplinary, federated research ecosystem. The project is part of a multi-method approach by the Helmholtz Metadata Collaboration (HMC) to monitor and assess the state of open and FAIR data practices in the Helmholtz Association of German research centers, Germany’s largest non-university research organization. The approach consists of two parts: a modular data harvesting and assessment pipeline, and an openly accessible dashboard with interactive statistics about the data publications identified with the pipeline. The dashboard provides insight into which data repositories research communities use to publish research data and it allows for assessing systematic gaps of this data with respect to the FAIR data guidelines. We illustrate how the approach can be used to engage communities in FAIR data practices and to counsel data infrastructure towards improving FAIR data across a federated research organization. All software and data discussed here are published under an open license and reusable by data professionals at other research performing organizations.

Keywords

• open science
• open data
• fair data
• fair metrics
• cultural change
• dashboard