ELIXIR is a distributed research infrastructure. Its Nodes bring together services, resources, expertise and communities across national and European contexts.
The Global Open Research Commons (GORC) framework offers a useful way to view these different elements as parts of one connected system. It can help Nodes understand how their activities fit together, where coordination is needed and which areas should be reflected in a Node data management strategy.
Why is this relevant?
ELIXIR activities are distributed across Nodes, Platforms, Communities and the Hub. They include data resources, tools, compute services, interoperability resources, training, governance and community support. These activities are connected, but they may be planned, funded and delivered through different structures.
For example, a service may depend on technical infrastructure, common standards, specialist expertise, governance arrangements and long term resources. Looking only at the service itself may therefore overlook important dependencies.
ELIXIR also recognises some resources at a pan-European level. Core Data Resources (CDRs) and Recommended Interoperability Resources (RIRs), a scheme currently transitioning to FAIR-Enabling Resources (FERs), are reviewed and endorsed across ELIXIR rather than by a single Node. Infrastructure Services such as the ELIXIR AAI (Authentication and Authorisation Infrastructure) provide shared technical capability that individual services can build on rather than duplicate. Recognising a resource in this way depends on the same technical, organisational and human elements that GORC describes.
GORC provides a shared structure for discussing these connections. It can help a Node bring together technical, organisational and human perspectives when developing its strategy.
What can Nodes learn from this?
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ELIXIR already brings together many elements of a research commons. Its activities include data resources, tools, compute infrastructure, interoperability, training, governance and community engagement.
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Node activities are connected to wider ELIXIR structures. A Node may contribute to Platforms, Communities, commissioned services and shared resources while also responding to national priorities and institutional contexts.
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Services depend on more than technology. Their development and continuity may also depend on governance, access arrangements, standards, expertise, engagement and sustainable resources.
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A shared framework can support coordination. GORC provides common terms for discussing activities that may otherwise be described differently across Nodes, Platforms and Communities.
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The framework can reveal dependencies. It can help identify where a strategic priority relies on other elements, such as infrastructure, skills, governance or funding.
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Not every Node needs the same strategy. Nodes differ in their remit, maturity, resources and national context. GORC provides a common structure without requiring identical priorities or approaches.
How can GORC support a Node strategy?
A Node can use the GORC elements to:
- organise existing activities into broader strategic areas
- connect national activities with ELIXIR wide structures
- identify dependencies between services, infrastructure, people and governance
- recognise areas that are fragmented or not yet addressed
- support discussion between people with different roles
- select priorities for further assessment and development
The framework can also help distinguish between what the Node delivers directly, what it coordinates and what depends on collaboration with other organisations or ELIXIR structures.
A Node’s Service Delivery Plan (SDP) and its data management strategy are closely related. Both are built on the Node’s established points of strength rather than a complete account of every possible activity. Making the connection between the two explicit can help ensure that priorities identified through GORC are also reflected in what the Node plans to deliver.
What can you do?
Select one priority area from your Node context and consider:
- which GORC elements it depends on
- which parts are managed within the Node
- which parts involve ELIXIR Platforms, Communities, the Hub or external partners
- where responsibilities are clear
- where further coordination may be needed
Use the result to refine the outline of your Node data management strategy.
Return to What to include in your Node data management strategy to apply the framework.