RDR (https://dataverse.csuc.cat/) is a federated and multidisciplinary data repository that allows Catalan universities, CERCA research centers, and other research entities to publish research datasets in FAIR mode and following the guidelines of the EOSC.
The governance of RDR is shared among the participating institutions, with coordination assumed by the Consortium of University Services of Catalonia (CSUC). CSUC is a consortium that provides shared services and infrastructure for teaching, research, and knowledge transfer, reaching the public and enabling greater efficiency in the Catalan research and knowledge system.
Each institution participating in RDR is assigned its own institutional collection within the repository through an instance. The distribution of responsibilities between CSUC (the manager of RDR) and the participating institutions is regulated by collaboration agreements. This document governs the rights and responsibilities between CSUC and the collaborating institution.
The repository operates using the open-source Dataverse software developed by Harvard University. This application allows each institution to have its research data in a personalized institutional space. Thus, each institution participating in RDR is responsible for the publication and curation of research data from its researchers and the management of collections and sub-collections within its institutional space.
The repository contains openly accessible research data, some of which may be embargoed or restricted. As of September 2025, there are 43 participating institutions (universities and CERCA research centers), and there are more than 1700 published datasets.
Mission
In accordance with the Catalan Open Science Strategy approved within the National Pact for the Knowledge Society of the Government of Catalonia, which aims to make project data and other research activities public following the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable), CSUC has created the RDR repository with the mission of promoting and facilitating open access to research data following these principles. The mission seeks to encourage scientific research, promote transparency, save costs, facilitate data reuse, and enhance research reproducibility, as well as achieve the goals of open science.
Objectives
Year after year, RDR develops an annual work plan that establishes the objectives and actions to be carried out.
The FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) are internationally recognized guidelines aimed at improving the management, publication, and reuse of research data. Their objective is to make research data more visible, usable, and valuable, both for the scientific community and society as a whole.
- Findable: Data and metadata should be easy to find for both humans and machines. This requires persistent identifiers (such as DOIs) and rich, searchable metadata.
- Accessible: Once found, data must be accessible under clearly defined conditions. This involves using standardized communication protocols and clarifying access rights, including cases of open access, embargo, or restricted access.
- Interoperable: Data must be presented in formats that allow integration with other datasets and tools. This includes using standardized vocabularies, ontologies, and recognized formats to facilitate machine-readability and interoperability across disciplines.
- Reusable: Data should be well-documented, richly described, and shared with clear usage licenses to maximize their reuse, reproducibility, and long-term value in future research projects.
The repository is aligned with these principles, providing a federated, multidisciplinary infrastructure to facilitate the publication and preservation of research data in accordance with the FAIR guidelines.
- 2014. Establishment of the Research Support Working Group, which set out to develop and agree on procedures allowing the creation of Data Management Plans and recommend a dedicated repository for depositing data. If deemed appropriate, the group suggested recommending the creation of a consortial research data repository within the framework of CSUC. Additionally, the group worked on drafting and proposing general policy principles for managing research data by Catalan universities.
- 2016. Initiation of the research data management support service for all member universities of CSUC.
- 2017. The Functional Commission of the Open Science Area requests the initiation of work to develop a proposal for reasonable minimum functional requirements for the creation of a research data repository.
- 2019. Publication of the document "FAIR x FAIR. Feasible, Affordable and Implementable Requirements for a FAIR research data repository"
- 2020. Presentation of the work plan and economic report of the repository, and launch in September in restricted access pilot mode (previously known as DataverseCAT).
- 2021. Opening of the repository in March to institutions wishing to use it under the name CORA.Research Data Repository (RDR) and establishment of the Technical Committee of RDR.
