Procedures for admission to the FDI Committee
Participation in the FDI Committee is possible via membership as an accredited research data center or via the status of a permanent guest.
Membership via (provisional) accreditation as a research data center
Research data centres (RDCs) that meet the minimum standards for quality assurance of the research data infrastructure jointly defined by the German Data Forum (RatSWD) and the FDI Committee can be accredited by the German Data Forum (RatSWD). With full accreditation, an RDC becomes a voting member of the FDI Committee. Temporary provisional accreditation by the German Data Forum (RatSWD) establishes provisional membership, which is exercised without voting rights in the FDI Committee.
Further information on the accreditation procedure and the accreditation criteria
Permanent guest status for interested parties with data expertise
In autumn 2024, a further form of participation was added to membership of the FDI Committee. The permanent guest status addresses stakeholders with expertise in research data management and in the provision of research data infrastructure for whom accreditation by the German Data Forum (RatSWD) is not an option or does not appear to be appropriate. Guest status offers these stakeholders an opportunity both to benefit from the exchange within the FDI Committee and to contribute to the Committee's tasks themselves.
If you are interested, please contact the coordination office of the FDI Committee.
Who is eligible?
The permanent guest status is primarily aimed at thematically interested stakeholders beyond accredited research data centres. These include, for example, relevant repositories and research data networks, international research data infrastructures or research data management projects. The permanent guest status also offers infrastructure institutions that are considering accreditation as a research data centre by the German Data Forum (RatSWD) or that are in the process of being founded and not (yet) in the accreditation process an opportunity to get to know and participate in the work of the FDI Committee.
How to become a permanent guest?
The granting of permanent guest status in the FDI Committee is regulated in Section 2 (4) of the Rules of Procedure of the FDI Committee (in German). First, a letter of motivation must be submitted to the Coordination Office, stating the specific interest and potential added value of active participation in the Committee and briefly describing the respective institution/institution/agency. If the letter demonstrates sufficient added value, a presentation will be made to the FDI Committee and a decision on granting guest status will be made by the voting members of the FDI Committee. Guest status does not include voting rights and is granted for a limited period of two years. An extension is possible on short application and under conditions of active participation.
What does the guest status entail?
The permanent guest status enables active participation in the meetings of the Committee and its working and ad hoc groups. This does not apply to internal topics, which are reserved exclusively for the (temporary) members of the FDI Committee. The costs associated with attending the meetings are generally to be borne by the participants themselves. Permanent guests receive the agendas of the meetings, but not the minutes. They are included in the general e-mail communication of the FDI Committee’s coordination office, as long as it does not concern internal processes such as circulation procedures, minutes etc.
Permanent guests are listed by name on the FDI Committee website. In their communication with third parties, permanent guests must refer to themselves as guests insofar as their relationship with the FDI Committee is concerned (in particular in the case of applications for third-party funding and on websites).