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"Where do I put my data?"
Finding an appropriate long-term data repository
Researchers should ideally determine if an appropriate domain repository exists for their data, and tools such as FAIRsharing.org and re3data.org can help with this determination. Alternatively, there are multiple "generalist" repositories available with broader focus including the Ag Data Commons, the preferred repository for USDA-supported data that does not fit into an existing subject-specific repository. Researchers need to consider the requirements of their community, funder, institution, publisher, and possibly other factors to select an appropriate repository.
re3data.org
re3data is a global registry of research data repositories that covers research data repositories from different academic disciplines. It includes repositories that enable permanent storage of and access to data sets to researchers, funding bodies, publishers, and scholarly institutions. re3data.org promotes a culture of sharing, increased access, and better visibility of research data.
FAIRsharing.org
FAIRsharing.org is a curated, informative, and educational resource on worldwide data and metadata standards, inter-related to databases and data policies. Researchers can use FAIRsharing as a lookup resource to identify and cite the standards, databases or repositories that exist for their data and discipline, for example, when creating a data management plan for a grant proposal or funded project; or when submitting a manuscript to a journal, to identify the recommended databases and repositories, as well as the standards they implement to ensure all relevant information about the data is collected at the source.
Journal publisher recommendations
Some major academic publishers list recommended research data repositories:
- Springer Nature/BioMed Central: https://www.springernature.com/gp/authors/research-data-policy/recommended-repositories
- Nature Scientific Data: https://www.nature.com/sdata/policies/repositories
- Elsevier: https://www.elsevier.com/authors/author-resources/research-data/data-base-linking#repositories
- DataONE member repositories: https://www.dataone.org/network/
- PLoS ONE: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/s/recommended-repositories
Repository Finder
Repository Finder, a pilot project of the Enabling FAIR Data Project led by the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in partnership with DataCite and the Earth, space and environment sciences community, can help you find an appropriate repository to deposit your research data. The tool is hosted by DataCite and queries the re3data registry of research data repositories.
DataSeer
Designed primarily for journal publisher and funder use cases, DataSeer uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) on an uploaded manuscript to a suggest which datasets from the article should be shared, what format they should be in, and which repository is most suitable.
OpenDOAR
OpenDOAR is the quality-assured, global Directory of Open Access Repositories that provide free, open access to academic outputs and resources. Each repository record within OpenDOAR is curated by an editorial team to offer a trusted service for the community. Criteria for listing include open access worldwide without fees, registration or logins. A variety of academic content types are included, e.g. journal articles, theses/ dissertations, reports, working papers, conference proceedings, books/ book chapter) and/or academic resources with sufficient metadata or documentation to make the material re-usable (e.g. archival material, datasets, software, images, videos, learning material).
Download a copy of the "Where do I put my data?" Word document, which includes search instructions for the resources listed: Finding_Repository.docx