ESFRI consists of delegates from EU and Horizon associated countries – as well as a commission representative -, who are mandated by the European Commission to create a strategic roadmap for the future of research infrastructures in Europe and support the European Research Area (ERA). To this end, the forum’s Drafting Group on Access conducted a survey amongst RIs, RI networks, and stakeholders in 2023 on access to RIs – the conclusions of which they recently published on Zenodo.
The report states that there are still challenges to overcome, and proposes a wide ranges of recommendations related to organisational and technological developments, as well as propositions for revising the European charter of access for research infrastructures.
With regards to institutional proposals, ESFRI recommends diversifying funding, calls for consistent EU support and for exploring the establishment of a central platform with guidance related to RIs. From a technological standpoint, it emphasises the importance of virtual remote access, interoperability, standardisation and harmonisation. Finally, it calls for strengthening the connection between RIs and open access by recommending that the charter elaborates further on them amongst other topics.
The full report can be accessed here.
