The Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI) is the coordinating body for the National Open Research Forum (NORF), the driving force behind the open research agenda in Ireland. Since 2022, DRI has supported NORF in administering the NORF Open Research Fund provided by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) to deliver the actions outlined in the National Action Plan for Open Research 2022-2030. Read on for a round-up of some of the recent NORF activities that have been delivered with the support of DRI, as well as the latest open research news.
News
Save the date: National Open Research Festival 2025
Ireland’s annual National Open Research Festival (NORFest) will be held at the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin on 6–7 November 2025. Additional details will be shared in the coming weeks, so be sure to save the dates!
Sign up to the NORF monthly newsletter to stay updated on the latest NORFest news, as well as announcements, events, and other news from NORF and its associated research projects and initiatives.
Take a look back at NORFest 2023.
Blog: ‘Standardising Funder Identifiers to ROR’
Read the recent University of Galway Library blog post written by Dr Cillian Joy, Head of Open and Digital Research at the University of Galway Library and member of the PID Task Force who helped prepare Ireland’s National Persistent Identifier (PID) Strategy, launched by NORF in October 2024. The blog explores the transition of the Crossref Open Funder Registry to the Research Organization Registry (ROR) to standardise funder identifiers. This move is designed to improve the accuracy and interoperability of research data. In an Irish context, the Irish National PID Strategy highlights the importance of using ROR. ROR IDs are highlighted as a key component in the National Action Plan for Open Research 2022-2030, which aims to enhance interoperability and transparency in the research ecosystem. The strategy recommends the adoption of ROR IDs to identify organisations uniquely.
Statement of support for a global research ecosystem
The global research ecosystem is at risk: recent developments threaten the open knowledge infrastructure we all rely on for everything, from climate research to global health preparedness. Invest in Open Infrastructure (IOI) has been working since 2020 to strengthen and sustain the tools that power global research. Join them in advocating for sustainable, open infrastructure that address global challenges by signing this Statement and committing to action.
Upcoming events
Strengthening Collaboration: Monitor & Repository Integration
Thursday, 13 February 2025, 12 p.m. (UCT) | Online
Join Irish Research e-Library (IReL) and OpenAIRE for the third webinar of the ‘One Year with the Irish Monitor’ series. This session will provide an overview of repositories’ role in supporting national Open Access goals, with a focus on best practices for data integration. It will give practical guidance on repository data integration, focusing on interoperability, and OpenAIRE with a Q&A session. Register for the webinar on Zoom.
In March 2024, IReL, NORF and OpenAIRE jointly launched the Irish National Open Access (OA) Monitor, providing a cornerstone in Ireland’s move towards a fully open access research ecosystem. The Irish Monitor is the outcome of a project funded by NORF under the 2022 Open Research Fund. The ‘One Year with the Irish Monitor’ webinar series was designed by IReL and OpenAIRE to deepen engagement with the Irish Monitor, encourage institutional adoption, and gather valuable user feedback.
Ten Approaches to Rights Retention in Europe
Thursday, 20 February 2025 | 12 p.m. (UCT) | Online
This webinar, organised by SPARC Europe under the Retain project as part of the Knowledge Rights 21 programme, aims to empower institutions which are considering facilitating legal Open Access (OA) publishing by supporting their authors’ rights retention. Key findings and recommendations from the upcoming Retain SPARC Europe report will be shared, featuring insights from ten countries across Europe.
The panel of international expert speakers for this event includes Eoin O’Dell, Trinity College Dublin, lead Principal Investigator (PI) of the NORF-funded SCOIR project.
View event details and register via ZoomSCOIR (Secondary rights, Copyright, Open access, Institutional policies, and Rights retention) is funded under the NORF Open Research Fund 2023. Strand I: Priority Actions. Co-led by Trinity College Dublin and TU Dublin, the project aims to achieve the objectives outlined by NORF by drafting secondary rights legislation for Ireland and by creating an open access and rights retention (RR) policy framework for institutions and funders. The potential impact of secondary rights legislation on institutional RR policies will be considered alongside the existing policy landscape and the recommendations of the National Action Plan for Open Research 2022-2030, National Open Research Landscape Report, Copyright Legislation to Support Rights Retention Policy Brief.
Knowledge Rights 21: Research Outputs and the Open Access Bill: Shaping the Future of Knowledge Sharing
Tuesday, 11 March 2025 | 2 p.m. (UCT) | Online
The Knowledge Rights 21 programme and SCOIR project are teaming up to host this webinar led by Professor Eoin O’Dell, lead PI of SCOIR. Professor O’Dell will discuss the draft Research Outputs and Open Access Bill, which marks Ireland’s progress towards incorporating open access policies. This webinar will help you understand the nuances of open access publishing in Ireland and the reasons why this Bill has the potential to create a significant impact when it is implemented in the Irish regime.
Register for the webinar on Zoom.
Recent events
- On Monday, 27 January 2025, Dr Lisa Griffith, Director of the Digital Repository of Ireland and Chair of the NORF PID Task Force presented the motivation behind Ireland’s National Persistent Identifier (PID) Roadmap and Strategy, and Cost Benefit Analysis to the Danish ORCID consortium, and discussed the methodology for drafting the strategy. View the presentation on SlideShare.
- On Wednesday, 5 February 2025, Dr Michelle Doran, National Open Research Coordinator, joined the ‘National PID Policies and Practices’ session at the Research Organization Registry (ROR) Annual Community Meeting 2025 to discuss the National Persistent Identifier (PID) Roadmap and Strategy project and the approach taken to develop the roadmap. View the presentation on SlideShare.
- Dr Michelle Doran participated in a panel session discussing open source and open science at the National Open Source Innovation Summit on Friday, 7 February 2025. at the Alex Hotel, Dublin.
Opportunities
Call for entries: Einstein Foundation Award for Promoting Quality in Research
The Einstein Foundation in cooperation with the QUEST Center for Responsible Research at the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH) invite nominations for the Einstein Foundation Award for Promoting Quality in Research. The 2025 winners will be awarded €350,000.
The international award is open to any researcher, or group of researchers, institution, organisation, and early career researcher around the globe whose work helps to fundamentally advance the quality, transparency, and reproducibility of science and research. The deadline for entries is 30 April 2025 at 10 p.m. (UTC).
Information about this award and instructions for applicants and nominators is available on the Einstein Foundation website.
NORF is funded by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research and Innovation and Science through the Higher Education Authority (HEA). It is coordinated by the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI), which is headquartered under the legal entity of the Royal Irish Academy.
