German National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI)

In the German National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI), valuable data from science and research are systematically accessed, networked and made usable in a sustainable and qualitative manner for the entire German science system. Up to now, they have mostly been available on a decentralised, project-related or temporary basis. The NFDI aims to create a permanent digital repository of knowledge as an indispensable prerequisite for new research questions, findings and innovations. Relevant data should be made available according to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable). NFDI consortia, groups of various institutions within a research field, work together in an interdisciplinary manner to implement the goal. Common, cross-consortia topics are covered in five NFDI sections: Common Infrastructures; Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects; (Meta)data, Terminologies, Provenance; Training & Education and Industry Engagement. Base4NFDI supports common technical-organizational solutions to avoid parallel developments. Already existing services are thereby adapted or extended to be usable for researchers from other disciplines.

The non-profit Association Nationale Forschungsdateninfrastruktur (NFDI) e.V., based in Karlsruhe, was founded to coordinate the activities for establishing a national research data infrastructure. Together, the NFDI network is shaping the future of research data management in Germany. In addition, NFDI will also be linked to international initiatives such as the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) and participate in its development.

NFDI and RDA are both community-driven initiatives and share the same goals to enable the sharing and re-use of data. NFDI is a national initiative but understands Research Data Management as an international task where the interaction with various actors and the exchange of different perspectives is essential. There are no isolated solutions for these goals, not on a national level and especially not on a global level. Therefore, NFDI wants to become part of RDA to work together and to support the idea of RDA.