{"id":52549,"date":"2018-08-02T10:58:07","date_gmt":"2018-08-02T14:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=52549"},"modified":"2019-01-25T14:09:59","modified_gmt":"2019-01-25T19:09:59","slug":"admin-team-co-ordinating-brocks-response-to-national-research-data-management-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2018\/08\/admin-team-co-ordinating-brocks-response-to-national-research-data-management-policy\/","title":{"rendered":"Admin team co-ordinating Brock\u2019s response to national research data management policy"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a crucial part of the research process that\u2019s often overlooked.<\/span><\/p>\n

Much energy is focused on gathering and analyzing data. Research data can include things like interview transcripts, measurements from laboratory instruments, answers to questionnaires, protein sequences and many other types of information as varied as the researchers themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

The data and their interpretations are the stuff of discoveries and breakthroughs, leading to new or deeper insights that shape the world around us.<\/span><\/p>\n

But storing and securing this goldmine of information has often not been well thought out, leading to data getting lost in the system, being unavailable to the wider research community or even violating basic principles such as research participant confidentiality.<\/span><\/p>\n

To that end, the Canadian government has created a<\/span> Draft Research Data Management Policy<\/span><\/a>. Brock University, like many other research institutions that rely upon federal government research funding, is preparing a response to this draft policy.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis consultation is an opportunity for Brock as an institution and for the federal government to prepare for this future: What resources are in place? What resources are needed? How will these proposed requirements ensure greater return on research investments?\u201d says Interim Associate Vice-President Research Michelle McGinn. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

McGinn and officials from the Office of Research Services, the Research Ethics Office, the Library, and Information Technology Services have formed a group to<\/span> gather feedback<\/span><\/a> from the Brock research community<\/span> and co-ordinate Brock\u2019s response.<\/span><\/p>\n

The exercise is not just academic.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe draft policy indicates that researchers may be required to include a data management plan in their applications for federal government grants or as a condition for release of those funds,\u201d says McGinn.<\/span><\/p>\n

She says once researchers publish their work, they\u2019ll be required to deposit the associated research data in a recognized digital repository.<\/span><\/p>\n

The<\/span> draft<\/span><\/a> outlines key elements of a management plan, including:<\/span><\/p>\n