Collaborative session notes:

Open session notes

This meeting will present a showcase of discipline/community developed guidelines, workshops, and other interventions designed to lower the barriers for implementing the FAIR principles. The showcase expands on the perspectives presented by GO FAIR, CODATA, WDS and the RDA FAIRsharing registry Working Group at the RDA 25th Plenary Meeting, part of International Data Week 2025 (IDW2025), and will introduce a draft Statement of Work towards an RDA recommendation on how the combinations of resources (standards, tools, templates, etc) that together define a FAIR implementation should be described, represented and shared to support standardisation initiatives, trainers, repositories and cross-domain integration. 

The session aims to define a suitable structure for a new RDA group that can bring together experiences from existing groups within the RDA, other global activities in CODATA/WDS and GO FAIR and a range of regional projects/initiatives on the topic. The examples presented will provide an overview of desirable features and stakeholder needs that an RDA recommendation should address. And the goal of the session is to take a step towards a more formal collaboration and develop a number of joint next steps to be taken under the guise of existing RDA groups or as part of a new RDA Interest Group or Working Group.

Opportunities for collaborations and synergies on this topic identified during and leading up to International Data Week 2025 (see also previous presentation details below):

• RDA FAIRsharing Registry WG
• RDA Life Science Data Infrastructures IG
• CODATA’s Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF) activities, https://cdif.codata.org/ 
• World Data Systems (WDS), https://worlddatasystem.org/ 
• GO FAIR Foundation, https://www.gofair.foundation/ 
• National Library of Technology, Czechia

Additional opportunities  or collaborations and synergies identified leading up to this meeting:

• TWG Climate service of the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change
• ITINERIS https://itineris.cnr.it/
• Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals (PARC) https://www.eu-parc.eu/ 

1. Welcome & Introduction (10 min)
   Format: Brief introduction to the session followed by an interactive icebreaker to the topic and draft Statement of Work where all participants are invited to engage.
2. Setting the scene: Systematic guidance on and (re)use of FAIR-enabling resources (30 min)
   Format: 3 coordinated flash talks providing different perspectives followed by Q&A
3. Discussion: Draft Statement of Work and candidate priorities for 2026–2027 (25 min)
   Format: Interactive review and ideation supported by a panel, interactive polling and collaborative editing tools. 
4. Synthesis: Driver initiatives developing guidelines, workshops and other interventions (20 min)
   Format: Summary and open floor discussion to identify contributors and other stakeholders to involve before submitting the Statement of Work..
5. Wrap-Up & Next Steps (5 min)

The topic was introduced at International Data Week 2025 in Brisbane, Australia during the RDA BoF session titled “The yellow pages of FAIR-enabling resources”. The session explored how curated collections of FAIR-enabling resources—including standards, tools, templates, and training materials—can support communities in implementing the FAIR data principles. Presenters shared examples from FAIRsharing, CDIF, and NIAID FAIRification initiatives, showing how these resources are organised, connected, and used to guide FAIR data practices across domains. The discussion engaged the RDA and the broader IDW community in identifying desirable features, needs, and opportunities for continued work on improving community-driven ecosystems of FAIR-enabling resources.

Highlights:

1. Introduced GO-FAIR Foundation’s proposed definition of what constitutes a FAIR-enabling or FAIR-supporting resource, including standards, services, and practices that underpin FAIR data implementation across disciplines.
2. Showcased a range of compelling examples from FAIRsharing, Implementation Profiles (FIPs) & the CODATA Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF), and the US NIH NIAID FAIRification Blueprint. As well as potential utility in supporting repositories in developing and demonstrating FAIR practices.
3. Raised the challenge of balancing simple, prescriptive, and quality assured guidance to users and community creators of collections of FAIR-enabling resources with support for comparable, machine-intepretable, and cross-domain interoperable resources. Other topics raised included the utility of these kinds of collections in skills / capacity building, certification, assessment and more.
4. Discussions will continue starting in mid-end of November on how to proceed with a 2nd BoF or the formation of a WG/IG.

Preparatory meetings: Leading up to the session, the organisers will arrange a short series of preparatory meetings to capture perspectives on the topic from a range of RDA groups and organisations that have broad representation across regions. These preparatory meetings will 1) inform the selection of flash talks to be presented and 2) expand this section with additional links to informative material. Contact Barbara Magagna and Wolmar Nyberg Åkerström if you would like to participate or suggest a group to reach out to.