Greifswald joins NFDI: Revolution in research data management!

Greifswald joins NFDI: Revolution in research data management!

The University of Greifswald made an important decision in June 2025 by becoming a member of the National Research Data Infrastructure Association (NFDI). This membership underscores the goal of strengthening data-driven science and improving access to comprehensive research data. Current data on topics such as climate change, health and political developments are available to researchers, but access is often still limited. To counteract this, the NFDI aims to create professionally oriented structures that enable long-term storage, indexing and publication of this data.

The focus of the NFDI is on the principle of open science, which promotes the provision of research data according to the principles of open science. Dr. Fabian Schmitt, consultant for research data management at the Greifswald University Library, emphasizes that improved data management increases the efficiency of research and increases its international visibility. To achieve these goals, the research data management team at the University of Greifswald offers comprehensive guidelines, tools and training that provide support throughout the entire data life cycle - from planning and collection to analysis, archiving and reuse.

FAIR principles and local consortia

Membership in the NFDI complements local services, which makes it easier to implement the FAIR principles (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable). Data management solutions are developed in 26 subject-specific consortia to meet the different requirements of scientific areas. Notable consortia include Text+ for voice and text-based data and NFDI4Biodiversity for biodiversity research. Several research groups at the University of Greifswald are actively involved in these consortia, including NFDI4Cat and NFDIxCS.

Christian Winterhalter, the senior library director, emphasizes the social relevance of a structured organization of research data, especially for Western Pomerania. Systematically collected data has the potential to support deeper analyzes of the ecosystems of the Baltic Sea and the lagoon landscape and to advance the digitization and accessibility of historical documents.

Open Science and the role of NFDI

Digital change is changing the way research results and data are acquired, stored, archived, evaluated, reproduced and distributed. The concept of Open Science aims to exploit the opportunities offered by digitalization and reduce barriers to open access to scientific information. Open science not only promotes transparency and knowledge exchange, but also quality assurance. Free access to publications and research data is a key concern, especially within the framework of the Horizon Europe program, which stipulates that publications from projects must be made accessible under open access conditions.

In this context, the handling of research data is crucial. Beneficiaries must handle this data responsibly and create a detailed data management plan. Research results must be stored in a trusted repository, while metadata must be provided according to FAIR grouping principles. Article 11 of Annex 5 to the grant agreement regulates specific aspects of data access licenses.

In summary, it can be seen that the University of Greifswald, with its commitment to the NFDI and the implementation of Open Science, not only strengthens its own research landscape, but also makes a valuable contribution to data exchange and collaboration in the scientific community. Support from local and national consortia also offers a promising approach to successfully meeting the challenges of modern research.