How Do I Share My Research Data?
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Data Sharing
There are many benefits to sharing research data. It increases academic impact, allows for use and reuse of data by researchers and others, enables collaboration, and is encouraged by funding agencies.
Resources for How to Share Data
The ability to share, and make data discoverable is an important factor when choosing long-term data storage options. We encourage you to view the Where Can I Store My Data? page to determine which storage option may best enable sharing.
Dataverse is now Borealis, the Canadian Dataverse Repository. Borealis is a repository for research data. This webinar recording provides an introduction to Borealis and an overview of how to log on, add a dataset, restrict access to files, and give collaborators permission to edit datasets.
This resource provides examples of data sharing approaches that are commonly used in the health and life sciences.
When sharing data or engaging in other research activities with external partners or collaborators, an agreement or contract is often necessary. Researchers are encouraged to reach out to the appropriate Vice-President Research and Innovation unit to determine if a non-funded agreement such as a data transfer agreement is required to support your data sharing goals.
This panel series, hosted in November 2021, focuses on the five principles of open scholarship as outlined in the Roadmap for Open Science, published by the Government of Canada in February 2020. The Principles include: People, Transparency, Inclusiveness, Collaboration, and Sustainability.
Funding Agency Requirements
It is important to address funder requirements when considering if, and how, to share your data. Some example policies are noted below, however, researchers should check with their sponsor to ensure they have the most up-to-date and relevant requirements.
US and International Sponsor Requirements
SPARC Data Share Requirements Database
This tool catalogues the current US federal funder research data sharing policies.
Sherpa Juliet
Sherpa Juliet is a searchable database and single focal point of up-to-date information concerning UK funding policies and their requirements on open access, publication, and data archiving.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) – Resources and Policies for Data Sharing
The NIH has recently established a new website to support data sharing. If you plan to apply to or hold NIH funds you can explore resources and sharing policies related to scientific data, genomic data, research tools, model organisms, clinical trials, and research publications.