# RDA France activities, successes and impact

## Françoise Genova

► To cite this version:

Françoise Genova. RDA France activities, successes and impact. RDA in Europe Annual Summit - Weave the RDA Tapestry: From Community Insights to Collective Action, RDA Europe, Nov 2025, Paris, France. hal-05378962

HAL Id: hal-05378962

https://hal.science/hal-05378962v1

Submitted on 24 Nov 2025

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# RDA France
## Activities, successes and impact

Liaising with and supporting the French Plan
for Open Science and the RDA

Françoise Genova, RDA France - Observatoire
Astronomique de Strasbourg
# National context
# Academic/research system

> Ministère de l'Enseignement Supérieur, de la Recherche et de l'Espace (MESRE – Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space)

> **Higher Education**

> 78 universities and communities of institutions

> 3500+ higher education institutions

> Grandes Ecoles

> Polytechnique, Ecole Normales Supérieures, Centrale, etc.

> **Research Performing Organisations**

> CNRS, INRAE, INRIA, INSERM, etc

> **Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR)**

> The agency funds project-based research carried out by public operators cooperating with each other or with private companies.
# Open Science in France

## Open Science is among the ministerial priorities

> https://www.enseignementsup-recherche.gouv.fr/fr/science-ouverte-50360

> https://www.ouvrirlascience.fr/accueil/

## 2016: Law for the Digital Republic

> Promote openness and circulation of data and knowledge

### National Plans for Open Science (PNSO)

#### 2018

> Generalise open access to publication

> Structure research data and make it available through open access

> Be part of a sustainable European and international open Science dynamic

#### 2021

> Generalising open access to publications

> Structuring, sharing and opening up open data

> Opening up and promoting source code produced by research

> Transforming practices to make open science the default principle

## Open Science Policies and Plans are also defined at the level of Universities and Research Organisations

> E.g. [CNRS Roadmap for Open Science (2019)](), [CNRS Research Data Plan (2020)]()

<figure><img src="image_2.png" /></figure>

<figure><img src="image_3.png" /></figure>

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In the national Open Science landscape

> Thematic infrastructures providing research data services have been included in the national research infrastructure strategy since its first inception in 2008. [2021 Roadmap](#)

> The National [Comité pour la Science Ouverte (COSO)](https://coso.fr/) started in 2020

> Among the Colleges: Data and Source codes & software

> The national data service [Recherche Data Gouv](https://recherche.gouv.fr/)

> An ecosystem for sharing and opening data
# Recherche Data Gouv at a Glance (November 2025)

## National Research Data Platform

**1 data repository**
+ 6800 datasets (> 120k files)
+ 3,7 M downloads

**1 data catalogue**
Data published in the repository or in external repositories

<figure><img src="image_5.png" /></figure>

## Competence Centres

39 federated Competence Centres

Providing support to data management & dissemination

81 institutions

operating one or more services

≈ 500 staff members

dedicated to supporting research teams

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#RechercheDataGouv
Local support: Les Ateliers de la Donnée

<figure><img src="image_7.png" /><figcaption>carte des ateliers de la donnée
novembre 2025</figcaption></figure>
RDA France
# History

> CNRS was a member of the 3 first projects funded by EC in support to RDA through Strasbourg Astonomedical Observatory

> At the national level a few meetings and a mailing list to disseminate information

> Sixth RDA Plenary in Paris in September 2015

> RDA France was one of the 9 initial national nodes established by the RDA Europe 4.0 project in 2018

> Web site among RDA National Groups

> Support to RDA and its national chapter RDA France in the initial PNSO, renewed in PNSO2

> Support from the National Fund for Open Science since 2019

> RDA France remained hosted by CNRS after the end of RDA Europe 4.0
# RDA France priorities

## High level priorities

* Support to the national Open Science goals and priorities

* Support RDA Global

## Started at RDA France inception

* Encourage more people and organisations to join RDA and participate in its activities

* Acculturate the French academic community to the data aspects of Open Science

* Encourage co-operation between researchers, STI professionals and computer engineers

* Support to certification of data repositories
# RDA France activities

* Dissemination of information about RDA and RDA France activities

* General and topical mailing lists (1100+ recipients)

* General mailing

* RDA in France Regional Group Posts & the “historical” national mailing list

* The historical list provides a first step before joining RDA

* On demand participation in meetings or university courses to present the RDA in general or specific aspects

* Meetings organised by RDA France

* Workshops and webinars

* Annual meeting: Plenary Day and workshops, webinars

* Working Groups on specific topics

* Support to participation in RDA Plenaries
# Topical RDA France activities

> Working Group on certification of data repositories common to the Data College of the COSO and RDA France

> ≈ 200 subscribers to the specific mailing list

> Several workshops each year

> Networking of certified and 'on the way to certification' repositories

> Support to CoreTrustSeal certification fee

> Working Groups on Disciplinary Data Management Plans

> Disciplinary DMPs which can be used as examples

> ≈ 40 volunteer experts

> V1 published in July 2025 in Recherche Data Gouv with a methodological note in HAL

> FAIR RDA France Letter

> November 2000 - October 2025

> 39 issues

> 300+ subscribers to the mailing list
# The Journées RDA France 2025

> 8th Annual meeting, 12-28 November + 4 December

> Plenary day 17 November

> Presentations by Ministry and CNRS representatives

> Presentation from Hilary Hanahoe (RDA Global) and Francoise Genova & Laurence El Khouri (RDA France)

> Presentation and discussion of adoption cases and feedback on trustworthy repository activities at RDA P25 and IDW 2025

> Webinar: Recherche Data Gouv

> Workshops

> How to participate in the RDA and RDA France (x2)

> How OPIDOR enriches its services for research source codes and software - Inist and WG5 of the Ateliers de la Donnée

> Workshop on Data Repository Certification – CoreTrustSeal criteria 2026-2028

> + Webinar Activities of the Source codes & software College

https://rdafrance2025.sciencesconf.org/
Other meetings in 2025

> RDA France workshops

> Certification of data repositories

> Beginners, OAIS, DataVerse, 4 February

> Advanced, criteria seen as difficult, CoreTrust Seal evolution, 11 September

> How to participate in the RDA, 10 & 12 February

> Pre-RDA Plenary Workshop

> Active participation in the organisation of

> RDA Workshop [Workshop The Value of RDA for Policies](https://www.rda-france.eu/en/workshops-the-value-of-rda-for-policies), 10 & 15 May – through RDA France participation in RDA Regional Assembly

> this meeting, in close collaboration with RDA Europe
# RDA France and the RDA

* Support to RDA Global funded by the National Fund for Open Science

* Regional Advisory Board/Regional Assembly

* Dissemination of information about the RDA and its activities to the French community

* Support to the community for participating in the RDA

* Information about new Groups and Recommendations

* Support to propose new subjects – BoFs

* Support to Plenary registration fees and newtorking of Plenary participants before, during and after the Plenary

* VP16: 55, VP17:80, VP18: 68; IDW2022/P19: 33; P20: 28+26; IDW2023/P21: 21+17, VP22: 45, P23: 8+26, VP24: 55, IDW2025/P25: 7+20
A few facts about French participation in
the RDA

> Currently 694 members of RDA in France Regional Group

> 10 organisations members of the Organisational Assembly

> 23 RDA Groups (active or historical) have or had a co-chair from France

> There are always been a French member in TAB since the beginning (except for a short period)

> Provision of adoption stories

> On-going, to be developed
# Meetings in the RDA framework

* Meetings organised or co-organised by RDA France

* Workshop in French La RDA pour les Nouveaux Venus – RDA for Newcomers, 19 April 2021, colocalised with P17

* <u>Recettes sans Frontières – Recipes without Borders</u>, P18
  Networking session, 9 November 2021

* In the framework of RDA 10 year Anniversary

* Certification of data repositories, beginners' workshop in French, 30 May 2023

* Regional Support to Certification of Data Repositories, 21 novembre 2023, co-organised with several partners

* <u>Webinaire RDA France</u>, in the RDA Around the World framework, 30 January & 1 February 2024

* Capacity to organise meetings in French in collaboration with the RDA
# Conclusion
# Support to RDA Strategic Plan

* Globalise

* Could participate with the organisation of meetings in French

* Sustain

* Dissemination towards French Research Organisations

* Empower

* Support progress in research data management practice and policy is a core RDA France aim

* Innovate

* Maximise potential and impact of RDA Outputs and Recommendations

* Dissemination

* Adoption stories
In the national context

> RDA activities come in support to multiple facets of the French national open science policy

> Dissemination

> Adoption

> E.g. National PID Strategies

> Participation in RDA Groups to push the national topics, point of view, knowledge and requirements

> E.g. maDMP, Data Stewardship, National Data Services, Evaluation, etc

> Development of RDA France own activities linked to the initial aims, the national context and community requests

> Certification of data repositories is cited in the PNSOs

> DMPs are recognized as a key tool

> RDA France is one of the actors of the French national Open Science landscape and networks and works in collaboration with its other components

> COSO, Recherche Data Gouv, also COARA France

> A recent example: liaison with the French Reproducible Research Network
# Community building

> Regular webinars on How to participate in RDA and RDA France

> Some of them before the RDA Plenaries

> Listen and respond to the community needs, linked to the national priorities and activities

> Data Management plans

> Activities around source codes & software

> The power of virtual meetings

> Less time consuming for the participants

> Inclusive (no cost)

> Supporting participation in the RDA Plenaries has been a strong leverage for building the national RDA community

> Registration fees

> Networking activities before, during and after the meeting