National FAIR strategy
In Denmark, efforts are being made to ensure that publicly funded research data adheres to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable), and that these principles are applied in research data management. The goal is to make publicly funded research data as open as possible but as closed as necessary.
Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Research, through the Danish e-Infrastructure Consortium (DeiC), has developed a national strategy for data management based on the FAIR principles (FAIR Strategy), which was published in 2021. The FAIR Strategy is also designed to serve as the political implementation of the Directive on open data and reuse of public sector information, expanding upon the previous EU directive on public sector information (PSI). The strategy applies to publicly funded research data, understood as the result of research funded by public funds or research conducted by public institutions, possibly with the inclusion of private financing.
As part of the strategy, the Ministry of Education and Research established a reference group tasked with monitoring and coordinating the implementation of the strategy. The reference group was created in 2021 and had its first mandate period from 2021-2022. During the initial mandate period, five working groups were formed under the FAIR reference group, focusing on data management policies and researcher support, data management infrastructure, financing, skills, and security. Over 60 experts from various academic fields, including representatives from Danish universities, foundations, as well as different public and private organizations, have participated in this effort.
In December 2022, the reference group and the working groups submitted a report on the focus areas to the Ministry of Education and Research, which then extended the mandate of the reference group and developed a remit for the new period. Initially, the mandate extended until the end of 2024, but due to delays, the second mandate period now runs until the end of 2025.
Read the individual deliverables, terms of reference and reports for the 2022 mandate period via these links:
- Terms of reference for the FAIR Follow-up Group: https://zenodo.org/records/7350730
- Action plan: https://zenodo.org/records/7350819
- Final report: https://zenodo.org/records/7575581
- Link to Zenodo channel where all deliverables can be read: https://zenodo.org/communities/0000-0002-6578-1210/?q=&l=list&p=1&s=10&sort=newest
- Overview of FAIR Advisory Group members and members of the five working groups
In December 2022, the FAIR Follow-up Group and the working groups submitted a final report on the focus areas to the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science (UFS). Shortly after, the UFS extended the mandate of the FAIR Follow-up Group and drew up terms of reference for the new mandate period. Initially, the mandate extended until the end of 2024, but due to delays, the second mandate period now extends until the end of 2025.
Read the individual deliverables, terms of reference and reports for the mandate period 2023-25 on Zenodo:
- Term of reference for the FAIR Follow-up Group: ENG: 10.5281/zenodo.10559676 / EN: 10.5281/zenodo.10653489
- Action Plan 2024: ENG: 10.5281/zenodo.11082775 / EN: 10.5281/zenodo.11082449
- Annual Report 2024: ENG: 10.5281/zenodo.14604179 / EN: 10.5281/zenodo.14604464
- Action Plan 2025: ENG: 10.5281/zenodo.15281348 / EN: 10.5281/zenodo.15280622
- Link to Zenodo channel where all deliverables can be read: https://zenodo.org/communities/danish-national-strategy-for-fair-implementation-2023-24
- Overview of FAIR Advisory Group members and members of the six working groups
If you want to know more about the national strategy, you are welcome to contact us.