Starting with the Horizon 2020 Framework Program for Research and Innovation, the European Commission launched the Open Research Data pilot (ORD pilot), a “flexible” pilot project for open access to research data. This project, along with open access to publications, has been a key policy of the Commission and applied mainly to data needed to validate results presented in scientific publications.
The ORD pilot was termed flexible in that it initially included only certain “core areas” of Horizon 2020, and projects outside the scope of the pilot could participate on an individual and voluntary basis (with an “opt-in” option). Projects could opt out of the pilot to protect intellectual property, personal data, for security reasons, or if the main research objective would be compromised by open access to data.
Starting with the 2017 Work Program, the Open Research data pilot was extended to all thematic areas of Horizon 2020. However, the Commission continued to recognize that some research data could not be made open, and the principle of “as open as possible, closed as necessary” remained valid. It was thus possible to opt to share or close research data at any stage-before or after the signing of the funding agreement-but reasons must be given for any closure (see General Annex L of the 2017 Work Program adopted July 25, 2016).
Participation in the pilot did not, however, affect the evaluation of proposals under the Horizon 2020 funding program: projects that joined the pilot were not evaluated more favorably, and those that chose not to be part of the pilot were not penalized.
The primary objective of the pilot was to optimize and maximize access and reuse of research data generated by Horizon 2020-funded projects, while appropriately taking into account:
- the need to balance openness and protection of scientific information
- commercial exploitation and IPR
- considerations regarding privacy and ethics
- security
- all other issues arising from data management and preservation
In addition to open access to research data, the ORD pilot introduced another innovation: the Data Management Plan (DMP). Participants in the pilot were asked to develop a DMP in which they need to specify how the data will be managed throughout the project cycle: which data will be generated or reused, which of them will be made open, whether and how they will be made accessible, and how they will be stored and shared.
There is also a section in the DMP dedicated to describing the resources (human and financial) planned for data management, as the costs associated with these activities, including the creation of the Data Management Plan, are eligible costs for reporting in any Horizon 2020 funding program.
Some useful resources for those who still have Horizon 2020 projects underway:
- The DMP Template for Horizon 2020 with guidance on filling in the fields
- EC guidelines on FAIR data management in Horizon 2020.