About the ORD Program
Mandate and National Coordination
A Vision for Open Research Data (ORD)
The open sharing of research data is essential for progress and excellence in all scientific fields and research disciplines. ORD makes research results transparent and more robust by enabling the re-use of data. It facilitates research collaboration across disciplines and institutions, fostering creativity and innovation. The ability to see and understand what research is doing is of great value to society and is becoming a vital resource in addressing global challenges.
The ETH Domain* set out its vision for ORD in a position paper on how a common ORD future should be built, in which the challenges of sharing data (e.g. ethical, legal, personal, security, financial and embargo) are carefully addressed. Bringing ORD to a next level, however, depends first and foremost on the commitment of the researchers, the availability of suitable infrastructure and supporting services, and an environment that recognises ORD as an important research output.
* The ETH Domain comprises the two Federal Institutes of Technology – ETH Zurich and EPFL in Lausanne – and the four Research Institutes – Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) and Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag). It is strategically managed by the ETH Board.
The five Measures
An ORD Program for the ETH Domain
The ETH Board has now launched an ORD program for the institutions of the ETH Domain under its supervision. This ambitious program aims at promoting pioneering projects related to ORD, jointly driving process and infrastructure developments, and offering information and training on the topic of ORD across institutions. It thus promots estabishing an increasingly coherent path through the research process.
By realising this programme, the ETH Domain is also fulfilling the Federal Council’s mandate to assume a leading role with regard to ORD in the context of data policy in Switzerland. The programme is based on the ORD position of the ETH Domain and coordinated with the National ORD Strategy.
The ORD program of the ETH Domain runs from the beginning of 2020 until the end of 2024. Within the framework of this program, measures were defined to promote and improve the practice of ORD synergistically at all institutions of the ETH Domain.
Measure 1: Support for domain-specific actions. Researchers using or developing ORD practices with and for their community will be financially supported to become future leaders in Open Science in their field – see projects.
Measure 2: Coordinate access to services and infrastructures for research data management. Targeted efforts will be made to improve the ecosystem of services for research data management and the infrastructures needed to support them. Interoperability and access are at the forefront of this effort.
Measure 3: Develop online courseware for RDM training. The availability and quality of training on RDM and its application to ORD practice will be greatly expanded and improved.
Measure 4: Legal aspects of RDM. Consolidated legal guidelines on ORD will be developed. These can serve as a common reference in the ETH domain. The goal is to align regulatory requirements with the practices of institutions in the ETH Domain and vice versa.
Measure 5: Career opportunities for ORD professionals. Employees whose responsibilities include supporting ORD will be specifically promoted. This is a contribution to securing the leading role of the ETH Domain in the field of ORD. There is a great demand for motivated and qualified specialists on a broad market.
The Steering Committee
The Steering Committee is responsible for the coherent and effective implementation of the program. The members are:
- Alun Ashton, PSI
- Rui Brandao, ETH Zurich
- Gilles Dubochet, EPFL
- Georg Fantner, EPFL (chair 2021-2022)
- Robert Finger, ETH Zurich (chair 2023-2024)
- Gian-Kasper Plattner, WSL
- Michele Griffa, Empa
- Carsten Schubert, Eawag
Expert Group Research Practices
The Expert Group for Research Practices (EG-R) is responsible for the implementation of
Measure 1. The members are:
- Arne Seitz, EPFL
- Christoph Stadtfeld, ETH Zurich
- Claudio Mucignat, Empa
- Dagmar Iber, ETH Zurich
- Damien Bouffard, Eawag
- Elizabeth Tilley, ETHZ
- Guillaume Anciaux, EPFL (co-chair)
- Markus Ammann, PSI
- Thomas Wüst, ETH Zurich
- Uwe Filges, PSI
- Veruska Muccione, WSL (co-chair)
- Viktor Kuncak, EPFL
Expert Group Services & Infrastructure
The Expert Group for Services and Infrastructure (EG-SI) is responsible for the implementation of Measure 2. The members are:
- Carlo Antonio Pignedoli , Empa
- Fabian Felder, Eawag
- Guilaine Vittoz, EPFL
- Henry Lütcke, ETH Zurich (chair)
- Ionut Iosifescu Enescu, WSL (vice-chair)
- Isabelle Eula, EPFL
- Leonardo Sala, PSI
- Matthias Töwe, ETH Zurich
- Rok Roskar, SDSC
- Spencer Edward Bliven, PSI
