ELIXIR-UK at the EOSC Symposium 2024: advancing FAIR data and interoperability

In October 2024, Carole Goble and Nick Juty from ELIXIR-UK (University of Manchester) represented our community at the EOSC Symposium, a flagship event driving the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) initiative. Their participation highlighted the UK’s ongoing commitment to fostering cross-European collaboration in research data management and interoperability, even post-Brexit.

Carole Goble, ELIXIR-UK’s Head of Node, contributed to two sessions. In the FAIR Metrics and Data Quality session, she presented “Insights from a UK bioscience infrastructure”, emphasising the importance of embedding FAIR principles into research workflows to ensure data quality and reproducibility. She highlighted the need for contextual metrics, support from diverse stakeholders – including funding bodies – and tools that simplify FAIR adoption. The session concluded with a panel discussion exploring actionable strategies for making research data FAIR and trustworthy across disciplines.

Carole also chaired a session on Semantic Interoperability in the EOSC Ecosystem, which examined how thematic communities can better utilise semantic artefacts for cross-domain research. Discussions revolved around frameworks like the FAIR Digital Object Framework and the WorldFAIR Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework, which aim to improve machine-readable metadata and seamless data exchange. The session emphasised tailoring interoperability solutions to specific research use cases while leveraging web technologies and generative AI to support researchers.

Nick Juty participated in a panel on Findability in FAIR, which explored the role of persistent identifiers (PIDs) and innovative tools like PID-Graph and Metadata Schema Registries in connecting research outputs and enhancing discovery. The panel also discussed the potential of an Open Web Index (OWI) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to integrate high-quality scientific data with web search capabilities, making research outputs more visible and accessible.

Why EOSC Matters for the UK

The EOSC Symposium provided an essential platform for ELIXIR-UK to showcase its leadership in implementing FAIR principles and contributing to developing an interoperable research ecosystem. As the UK continues collaborating with European partners, such events ensure that UK researchers remain key players in shaping global standards for data sharing, interoperability, and open science. The presence of ELIXIR-UK members reinforced the importance of aligning national efforts with European initiatives to maximise the impact of research data on innovation, policy, and societal challenges.

Carole and Nick’s contributions underscore the value of UK involvement in EOSC, fostering stronger links between research infrastructures, funders, and data services to ensure that FAIR principles are actionable and effective.

As indicated by EOSC, “​​The UK has a strong history of investment and leadership in open research and digital research infrastructure. The UK was a founding member of EOSC and indeed led the formative EOSC Pilot / Hub project. While Brexit and delays in the UK associating with the Horizon Europe project have made engagement in EOSC difficult, the UK remained engaged through UK-based EOSC Association observers and project partners. Now that the UK has been associated with Horizon Europe, as of January 1, 2024 UK-based researchers and organisations are able to participate and apply for HE projects, including those related to EOSC, on the same level as others in the EU Member States.”