FAIR-IMPACT Open calls for support

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. How can I/my organisation apply to this Open Call?

To apply, you and/or your organisation must comply with criteria concerning your eligibility to receive funding, outline how your chosen support action/programme aligns with your work, and confirm that you have the relevant experience needed to implement the support action. 

Your proposal will need to be submitted using the TRUST-Grants platform being used by the FAIR-IMPACT project. If you do not already have a FAIR-IMPACT website account, you will need to create one first to access the Open Call dashboard in the platform. You can save a draft of your Open Call application and return to it at a later date if necessary.

Q2. What information is needed as part of my application?

As part of your application for the Open Call you will be asked to provide:

• Your name, contact details and organisational affiliation. Where the application is being made on behalf of a group, a nominated lead participant will need to provide these details;
• The type of organisation you are based at; The country you are based in; 
• The support programme/action you are selecting.  

In addition to this information, we expect you to clearly demonstrate the following:

• Willingness to participate in the required workshops, hackathons and meetings that are outlined as part of the specific support programme/action (these will be held virtually); 
• How your chosen support action will aid or align with your work. This will be in the form of a short statement on how your participation in the given support action will benefit your organisation and how you plan to build on the outcomes;
• Confirmation that you meet the person specifications outlined in the specific support action description (for Route 2 support actions only, for example, the ability to progress the outcomes of the support action within the organisation, technical expertise, etc.); 
• Willingness to participate in an exit interview within a month after the end of the support action which will be used to draft a FAIR-IMPACT Implementation Story;
• Willingness to participate in periodic follow up questionnaires and/or interviews.

Q3. What will FAIR-IMPACT provide for each support action?

FAIR-IMPACT will provide a dedicated, dedicated support package including virtual workshops, expert guidance, and advice from FAIR-IMPACT project partners and resource providers, to enable successful applicants to implement a particular tool(s) or approach. 

For Route 2 support only: FAIR-IMPACT will also provide financial support of up to a maximum of 10.000 EUR to successful applicants to enable their participation, payable by invoice to the individual or their organisation upon successful completion of the support action. Each support offer will make clear the amount of financial support being made available to successful applicants. The exact amount of the financial support will vary across the support actions as it is calculated using a standard day rate of 500 EUR against the effort required to carry out the work. The maximum amount of effort required to participate in any support offer will not exceed 20 days over a period of a maximum of four months. In most cases, we anticipate that the number of days required to participate in support offers will be between 5-10 days for participants over a 1-2 month period. Funds may be used solely for supporting staff time to carry out the support offer activities. The funds may not be used to support travel, catering or purchasing of equipment.

We welcome applications from teams, but it is important to note that the funding provided is based on the number of days required to complete the action rather than the number of people involved. For example, a successful application with one member of staff taking part will receive the same amount as a successful application from a team with four members of staff taking part. Financial support will be payable by invoice to the FAIR-IMPACT project coordinator (KNAW-DANS) upon successful completion of the support action and participation in an exit interview.

Q4. What are my/my organisation’s contractual obligations during and after the receipt of the grant?

This applies to applications for Route 2 support only. Financial support to third parties (grantees) raises the following contractual obligations: 

• Prevention of Conflict of interest;
• Confidentiality and security;
• Ethics and values;
• Visibility;
• Information, and;
• Record-keeping.

 

Under FAIR-IMPACT’s obligations to its funder, concerned with checks, reviews, audits and investigations, certain bodies (i.e., the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), and the European Court of Auditors (ECA)) can also exercise their rights towards the recipients of funding from FAIR-IMPACT.

The above are in line with the European Commission’s rules for providing support to third parties. Full information on all of the above will be contained in the contracts issued to successful applicants.

Q5. What types of support actions will be offered?

For Route 1 support only: For those who are just getting started with supporting the FAIR Principles or are less advanced on their FAIR-enabling journey, FAIR-IMPACT offers dedicated support including expert guidance and advice from FAIR-IMPACT mentors and external experts, practical advice, and one-to-one support to:

• Undertake a supported self-assessment of current FAIR-enabling practices;
• Develop a FAIR implementation action plan ;
• Devise an engagement strategy.

The support programmes offered via Route 1 are targeted to three key stakeholder groups:

• National level initiative;
• Research performing organisation;
• Repositories and data service providers.

For Route 2 support only: The FAIR-IMPACT project is working to refine or augment a number of current and emerging FAIR-enabling approaches and solutions with our integrated use case partners. Below is a list of example support offers that may be developed over the life of the project (this list will be refined and updated with details as the offers are defined): 

• FAIRness assessment challenge for datasets and semantic artefacts;
• Enabling FAIR Signposting and RO-Crate for content/metadata discovery and consumption;
• Implementing specifications of shared metadata descriptions of semantic artefacts and their catalogues;
• Testing guidelines for creating a user-tailored EOSC-compliant Persistent Identifiers  policy;
• Applying FAIR-enabling guidelines for research software within EOSC; 
• Implementing components of a metadata schema designed to improve legal interoperability. 

Q6. Can I propose my own specific tools, approaches or solutions for use in the support programme/actions?

For Route 1 support only: This support Route gives Research Performing Organisation (RPOs), repositories and, data service providers, and national-level initiatives the opportunity to be supported in the self-assessment of FAIR-enabling practices and the co-development of FAIR implementation action plans. Participants are encouraged to flexibly implement the support to fit their environment and goals. Tools, approaches, and solutions will be provided by FAIR-IMPACT mentors and external experts, but participants are also welcome to introduce other resources they find relevant to integrate in their action plan and inspire other participants.
 

For Route 2 support only: You cannot propose tools or solutions to be supported through this or any future Open Calls for Support. The FAIR-IMPACT Open Call for support will provide a list of clearly defined support actions which will employ specific tools, approaches and solutions. Through these Open Calls, support will be available for these specific tools, approaches and solutions only.

FAIR-IMPACT will also later be running an Open Call for in-kind support, where Research Performing Organisation (RPOs), repositories, data service providers, and national-level initiatives will have the opportunity to be supported in the self-assessment of FAIR-enabling practices and the co-development of FAIR implementation action plans. Details of this in-kind support programme will be made available via the FAIR-IMPACT website in due course. The expected date for the start of the Open Call for in-kind support is in the second half 2023. 

Q7. Can I apply for other FAIR-IMPACT Open Calls? 

Yes! Applicants are free to apply to more than one support programme and/or support action being offered by FAIR-IMPACT. FAIR-IMPACT will employ a transparent selection process and aims to ensure that a diverse pool of applicants are selected. Though applicants can apply for multiple support actions under FAIR-IMPACT, the selection process will take action to ensure that as broad and diverse a pool of candidates as possible is selected, while not jeopardising quality.

Please note that neither the Route 1 nor Route 2 are open to individuals or groups based at any of the FAIR-IMPACT project partner organisations, nor to individuals who hold the status of FAIR Champions under FAIR-IMPACT. In addition, those who have been appointed as FAIR Champions themselves cannot benefit from financial or in-kind support.

For Route 2 applications, where there is indication of conflict of interest or double-funding, the applications will be rejected. While there is no limit to the number of support actions that can be applied to, FAIR-IMPACT will ensure that a maximum of 10,000 euros is provided to any single applicant applying to more than one support action over the life of the project.

Q8. How will applications be evaluated?

Applications for support will be evaluated by a panel of internal FAIR-IMPACT partners. Mechanisms will be in place to ensure there are no conflicts of interest among panel members reviewing each proposal. Only those proposals that are assessed as having credible plans for leveraging the outcomes of their participation in their organisations will be considered.

Evaluation will also consider the following criteria to establish balanced and diverse distribution of the grants:

• Geographical balance;
• Balance between key stakeholder groups (i.e., Service providers, National level initiatives, Research communities & infrastructures, Research performing organisations, Individuals in science, Research funding organisations, Publishers, Data infrastructures, Citizen science organisations, Scientific societies and academies);
• Gender balance;
• Preference will be given to applicants from areas/domains identified as being less ‘EOSC-ready’*;

*EOSC readiness will be judged according to the EOSC Executive Landscape Working Group report on 'Landscape of EOSC-related infrastructures and initiatives' (https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/cbb40bf3-f6fb-11ea-991b-01aa75ed71a1) and the RDA4EOSC project research on the engagement of disciplinary research communities with the EOSC (https://www.rd-alliance.org/rda4eosc-researchcommunities). 

Q9. How many applicants will be selected for each support action being offered?

In most cases, there will be an upper limit of 15 participants invited to join each support programme or support action being offered to ensure that there is adequate support from the FAIR-IMPACT Team to the successful applicants. Please check the specific call pages for details.

Q10. What are Implementation Stories?

All successful applicants to the support programme/actions will contribute to the production of an Implementation Story describing their experience of taking part in the support action. These will be based on exit  interviews and drafted by FAIR-IMPACT partners. Implementation Stories share useful insights and tips that can help others  to become more FAIR-enabling. These will be made available via the FAIR FAIR-IMPACT Zenodo community.

Implementation Stories were originally developed as part of the FAIRsFAIR project; they illustrate good practices in research communities and organisations to support the implementation of the FAIR principles. Links to the FAIRsFAIR Implementation Stories can be found on the FAIRsFAIR website. 

Q11. Where can I get more information on the Open Calls for Support?

If you would like further information on the Open Calls for Support, or have any questions on the overall process please contact opencalls@fair-impact.eu.

The best way to keep up to date with details for all Open Calls for support as they are released is to submit an Expression of Interest in the form above, including your contact details. Signing up to receive communications from FAIR-IMPACT on the project website will also allow you to keep up to date on all the news, activities and calls in the project https://fair-impact.eu/join-fair-impact-community 

¹ The exact amount of the financial support might vary across the support actions as it is calculated using a standard day rate of 500 EUR against the estimated effort required to carry out the work. This equates to a maximum of 20 days of financial support per grant over an implementation period of maximum four months.

² FAIR-enabling capacity to be measured against work conducted by EOSC Landscape Task force, who have provided a baseline for EOSC-readiness at the country level (see: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/95e4a900-2a21-11eb-9d7e-01aa75ed71a1/language-en) and the RDA4EOSC project, who have published a comparison and summary findings to provide a baseline for EOSC-readiness at the domain level (see: https://www.rd-alliance.org/rda4eosc-researchcommunities).

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