R03. Continuity of Access

From the CTS application:
The repository has a continuity plan to ensure ongoing access to and preservation of its holdings.

The CTS certification guidelines state that “evidence for this Requirement should relate more to governance than to the technical information that is needed in R10 (Preservation plan) and R14 (Data reuse)”. Guidelines regarding governance are outside of this guide’s scope. Guidance regarding technical information about the Dataverse software’s support for continued access is provided in “R10. Preservation plan”
 

Answers from successful applicants

Tilburg University Dataverse collection:

Dataverse was originally designed to store data during the research process and up to 10 years at least. However, Tilburg University Dataverse and its data protocol is designed for archiving data at the end of the research process and enabling longer data preservation.

For long-term archiving, consultation takes place with the organization Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) on the development of a Front Office / Back Office service agreement. DANS' archiving system for research data, EASY, already has been credited by Data Seal of Approval as well as DIN. Tilburg University Dataverse is among the first to engage in a pilot with DANS to enable a SWORD interface (interoperability standard) between Tilburg University Dataverse and EASY to secure long-term archiving. Both parties are committed to this pilot that has started in September 2017.

The pilot is planned for production in the second quarter of 2018. The project workflow is defined in the document "SWORD interface DataverseNL > EASY", version 2.0 dated November 11, 2017 (in Dutch). This document is available upon request.
 

QDR:

QDR is committed to providing repository services and access to data for the long term. Cognizant that funding and institutional environments can change, QDR has taken various measures to ensure continued access to its materials in the event of cessation of operations, within the scope of its commitment to provide access to data for at least 20 years from the point of deposit. Beyond QDR’s strategies for sustainability (R5) and preservation (R14), the repository assures continued access to its material via membership in two organizations, the Data Preservation Network (DPN, https://dpn.org/) and the Data Preservation Alliance for the Social Sciences (Data-PASS, http://www.data-pass.org/).

As part of our agreement with DPN: (1), our holdings are deposited in DPN’s long-term storage facility, which guarantees preservation for 20 years, and (2), DPN will seek out a new custodian for the data should QDR not be able to assure continued access after the guaranteed preservation period.

Data-PASS follows a similar, but more immediate and guaranteed succession rule. If any of Data-PASS’s member repositories ceases operations, the other members agree to continue hosting its materials.

QDR’s deposit agreement explicitly allows QDR to transfer stewardship of deposits to ensure ongoing access.

Links:
Data-PASS: http://data-pass.org/
DPN: https://www.dpn.org/
Standard Deposit Agreement (requires registration): https://qdr.syr.edu/deposit/standarddeposit
 

DataverseNO:

Data deposited into DataverseNO are managed according to best practice principles including secure archiving, preservation and continuous, reliable and open access to research data in accordance with national guidelines and EU principles for managing research data. The responsibility for compliance with these principles and guidelines is shared between UiT The Arctic University of Norway (owner of DataverseNO) and the individual partner institutions, and is regulated in the agreement on the use of DataverseNO (in Norwegian only). The key points in this agreement are listed below in English translation:

The partner institution is responsible for:

  • the registration of research data in DataverseNO in compliance with current guidelines (DataverseNO Deposit Guidelines).
  • the quality of metadata and the deposited research data from their own institution.
  • their archived research data having a content that can be made openly available.
  • clarifying the ownership and rights to the research data before archiving and publishing.
  • user training and user support for employees and students at their institution.

UiT The Arctic University of Norway (owner of DataverseNO) is responsible for:

  • the operation and management of DataverseNO.
  • the adaption of common guidelines for DataverseNO (User Guides) to be in line with external requirements (for example from DataCite), best practice principles, and the functionality of the system.
  • the integration of DataverseNO with the DOI service from DataCite so each archived dataset can be identified via DOI.
  • secure archiving and access to the research data for a minimum of 10 years after assigned DOI, in accordance with the requirements from DataCite.
  • preparing an institutional collection in DataverseNO for the partner institution.
  • the allocation of data storage for the partner institution.
  • the training and support of super users at the partner institution.

Responsibility
All depositors must accept the DataverseNO Deposit Agreement [1] prior to the archiving of data. This document provides to DataverseNO the non-exclusive right to reproduce, translate, and distribute the deposited items in any format or medium worldwide and royalty-free, including, but not limited to, publication over the Internet.

According to the Steering document for DataverseNO [2], UiT The Arctic University of Norway (owner of DataverseNO) is responsible for

  • secure archiving and data retrieval for at least 10 years after the assignment of DOI.
  • making the DataverseNO policies and guidelines known to administrators of DataverseNO.
  • keeping the DataverseNO policies and guidelines up to date in accordance with best practice principles.

Partner institutions are responsible for ensuring that the DataverseNO policies and guidelines are applied to the institutional collections and the thematic sub-collections contained in these.

Continuity
UiT The Arctic University of Norway (owner of DataverseNO) is part of the national, governmental higher education and research system in Norway, as one of ten general state-founded universities under the ultimate responsibility of the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.
UiT The Arctic University of Norway has a long-standing record as a pioneer in promoting Open Access, Open Data and Open Science and has as a goal in its present strategy (2018-2022) to be national leading on Open Science. Thus, there is a strong commitment at the institution to support, prioritize and fund activities and services like DataverseNO, for the benefit of the institution.

The daily operations and the development of DataverseNO are managed by permanent staff from the University Library, the IT department and the Research administration at UiT The Arctic University of Norway, as part of their ordinary tasks within their organization, and based on defined responsibilities and roles agreed upon by the directors for the three organizational units, and approved by the university director. As such, DataverseNO is not a project or a separate organization or a corporate body, but a repository owned and operated by UiT The Arctic University of Norway, and offered as a service to other institutions.

As stated in the Steering document for DataverseNO, UiT The Arctic University of Norway (as owner of DataverseNO) commits to ensure the proper management and operation of the repository service in accordance with the responsibilities described in the document mentioned. The funding of DataverseNO consists of membership fees from partner institutions and internal funds and resources from UiT The Arctic University of DataverseNO (as owner of DataverseNO). The membership fee is based on established practices for common institutional services in the higher education sector in Norway, and includes fixed overhead expenses and volume pricing of storage services. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that UiT The Arctic University of Norway will close down DataverseNO. But if this unlikely scenario should take place, UiT The Arctic University of Norway (owner of DataverseNO) commits according to the DataverseNO Preservation Policy [3] to ensure that archived data is retained and transferred to approved repository/-ies in accordance with the agreement with DataCite for assignment of DOI to datasets in DataverseNO, before the service is discontinued. This will also be the preferred action for deposited data in an enduring perspective, as stated in the Steering document for DataverseNO. Datasets in the institutional collections are transferred to (a) certified general research data repository/-ies. Datasets in special collections are transferred to certified subject-relevant repositories after consulting the involved Designated Communities.

In addition and according to Norwegian legislation, research data from governmental sector will be transferred to the National Archives of Norway [4], securing long-term availability and accessibility of the data, in the case of closure of DataverseNO.

References:
[1] DataverseNO Deposit Agreement : https://site.uit.no/dataverseno/about/policy-framework/deposit-agreement/
[2] Steering document for DataverseNO : https://site.uit.no/dataverseno/about/steering-documents/
[3] DataverseNO Preservation Policy: https://site.uit.no/dataverseno/about/policy-framework/preservation-policy/
[4] The National Archives – https://www.arkivverket.no/en/about-us/the-national-archives-of-norway