DANS on FAIR and Open Data in the NFI Science Café

2 December 2021

Wherever research is carried out, questions regarding open access and the reuse of research data come into play. These questions also occur in forensic research. During a Science Café session of the Netherlands Forensic Institute, Cees Hof (DANS) highlighted the role of repositories in making research data Open and FAIR.

The government and science agree: data is there to be shared. A great thing, because sharing data increases transparency, strengthens innovation, stimulates forensic science and facilitates cooperation and education. Yet forensic researchers are not inclined to make data public. A missed opportunity, because with legal and technical adjustments a lot is possible.

During the last Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) Science Café of this year, on November 23, Rolf Ypma of the Workgroup Open Data of the NFI, and Cees Hof, Data Station Manager at DANS, explained what is desirable and especially what is possible. In this session, DANS naturally emphasised the role of good Research Data Management, but especially what a good repository can mean for researchers if data has to be made more FAIR and Open. In 2022, both organisations will talk further about the possibilities of cooperation.