Existing UBC policies including other governance and standard documentation address many of the aspects of RDM across the research ecosystem. While UBC may wish to consider implementing a specific overarching RDM policy in the future, this was not identified as a priority by the community at this time given the existing policies at UBC that already address most aspects of RDM. Meaningful progress could be reached through the implementation of standards and guidance documentation. To add clarity and direction to the institutional governance framework, development in this area should consider FAIR and CARE principles, the UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and British Columbia’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) and Indigenous data as priorities.

Despite the presence of existing governance documents, awareness of them could be improved. In concert with centralized training and awareness programs outlined in subsequent sections, attention should be paid to raising awareness in the community about existing governance structures and policies. As new artifacts are developed, they should be included in these awareness programs.

Recommended Actions

1. Develop governance documentation that supports good RDM Practices, while prioritizing research involving Indigenous data and implementation of the DRIPA.
2. Establish a program to raise awareness in the UBC research community regarding governance principles, documentation, and resources associated with RDM.

Increases in the size and diversity of research datasets in recent years has also raised demands for additional capacity of the continuum of data storage throughout the data lifecycle — active, repository and archival. To support the RDM needs of all researchers, adequate and appropriate storage must be available. UBC has already committed significant investment into active storage and high-performance computing (HPC) through the Advanced Research Computing unit to complement limited national resources (namely through the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, DRAC). However, UBC’s one-time capital investment will reach end-of-life before the conclusion of some current research projects but there is a lack of clarity regarding continuity of resources beyond the investment’s time period. In addition, storage of sensitive data, including health data, poses additional challenges since it is not currently supported by national resources.

Research that involves partnerships with Indigenous communities also carries an additional responsibility to ensure that principles such as Ownership Control Access and Possession (OCAP^TM), UNDRIP, DRIPA, and other place-based, community-specific protocols are considered and supported. When considering all of these aspects of RDM, a strong and clear overlap with the research ethics process was revealed. The feedback from the UBC research community continually emphasized the importance of involving and coordinating with research ethics processes.

Data deposit at the conclusion of a research project frequently requires similar storage capacity compared to active storage. Researchers face similar challenges when it comes to data sensitivity and long-term storage. UBC researchers have access to the UBC Dataverse Collection for small-to-medium size, low-risk datasets and the national Federated Research Data Repository (FRDR) platform for large data sets. However, increased demand for data management and especially data curation requires institutional resources beyond that which are currently available and only the current scale of data deposits can be supported. Moreover, neither Dataverse nor the FRDR platform currently support the storage of High or Very High-Risk information such as identifiable health data. 

Recommended Actions

1. Seek continued access to appropriate storage throughout the data lifecycle for researchers, while considering the unique challenges of different classifications of data.
2. Foster an environment of learning about RDM including processes, practices and documentation, especially to support the prioritization of Indigenous data protocols and other sensitive data considerations into RDM.
3. Increase institutional capacity for repositories’ data curation and metadata practices that are consistent and provide enhanced discovery and reuse for research datasets.
4. Explore the creation of a storage repository for high-risk health data and other data with unique requirements.
5. Continue to support and promote access to existing national resources and disciplinary repositories.

Data management plans (DMPs) are living documents that describe the practices, processes and strategies of managing data throughout the life cycle of their research. UBC Library has been supporting DMPs for the last decade with hundreds of researchers using the service. However, the community’s feedback indicated a strong desire and need for guidance, templates and exemplars that are discipline and funder-specific. The community’s feedback also indicated the need to reduce administrative burden by aligning the language used in UBC’s Research Information System (RISe) for the ethics process with DMPs. With this type of central, unified and ongoing support, DMPs could assist researchers to proactively establish how they will manage their data through all stages of a research project and beyond.

Recommended Actions

1. Focus on providing and facilitating access to discipline- and funder-appropriate data management planning software, language, templates, and exemplars.
2. Investigate the potential for unified and coordinated services to support data management planning.
3. Coordinate DMPs and ethics applications to reduce administrative burden on researchers.​​​​​​

Existing efforts to support UBC researchers’ RDM needs have been provided through many UBC departments. Some academic disciplines have well established practices in support of RDM where others have few resources and limited experience. These efforts and practices, to date, have been largely uncoordinated and independent of each other.

The UBC community expressed a clear desire to strive for a more coordinated support structure, in the form of a centralized resource. The centralized resource should be sufficient to support those with limited existing resources while not interfering with the existing practices of the more established areas. The central resource should include templates, training, and documentation related to all aspects of RDM and should aim to limit how often individuals need to seek specialized information from those with differing expertise. Rather, resources that reside between different UBC departments should be aligned to reduce overlap and provide a more complete RDM picture.

Early-career researchers and trainees expressed the strongest desire for RDM support and training.  This cohort specifically identified the need to better understand available resources given their direct involvement with many of the tasks associated with data management.

When considering how to raise awareness of these resources and how best to deliver training, UBC should look to existing programs and curriculum. Attempts should be made to build RDM into existing programs and practices.

Recommended Actions

1. Establish a unified RDM knowledge hub that provides a single, trusted source of information for all areas of the institution.
2. Develop RDM training and awareness materials and programs that utilize different formats and media.
3. Enhance and develop in-person RDM training and awareness workshops and presentations.
4. Both online and in-person training and awareness programs should consist of unified material from all RDM related service providers (e.g.: Ethics, Library, IT, IRSI, Legal, and ARC) to ensure participants do not need to attend separate sessions related to each area.
5. Strive to embed RDM training and awareness into existing programs starting at the undergraduate level. This includes developing materials that speak to the nuanced requirements of different disciplines and departments.

UBC holds a wealth of RDM expertise and resources across its campuses and within various units and departments. This includes resources and expertise at UBC Advanced Research Computing, UBC Library, Faculties, research institutes, Research Ethics, IT, the Indigenous Research Support Initiative, and more. The community feedback indicated researchers’ desire for a more coordinated, unified approach to RDM support and communications. Moreover, research data management requires constant skill upgrading to keep up with this dynamic field.

Recommended Actions

1. Establish a unified communication strategy across research data management service providers that is cohesive, coordinated, and consistent.
2. Ensure appropriate staffing for centralized research data management services such as data management plans, data security services, and research data repositories.
3. Encourage the development of skills and knowledge of research data management practices and tools among staff who support and conduct research.

UBC has established involvement with a variety of partners across many research contexts such as the DRAC, CANARIE, U15, BCNET, the Research Universities Council of BC, and countless discipline- and topic-specific committees, organizations, and collaborations. In many cases, UBC has taken a leadership role and contributes at a variety of levels across the research ecosystem in others. In conjunction with these groups, UBC also has regular, direct contact with the major funding organizations in BC, Canada, and internationally including the Tri-Agencies, CFI, BCKDF, NIH etc.

Partnerships such as these shape the research landscape across Canada. Key partners also provide important resources for UBC researchers that augment what is available institutionally.

Recommended Actions

1. Advocate for changes to funding models to better support research that partners with Indigenous communities.
2. Maintain and evolve existing partnerships with the Digital Research Alliance of Canada.
3. Seek new partnership opportunities with Indigenous communities and related support organizations.