Read the full article on the UNESCO Website

Global survey report on crisis data policies facilitated by open science

Strong demand for crisis data checklists but few in place, UNESCO and CODATA survey finds

Most organisations working on disasters, crises and emergencies see value in a checklist for crisis data policies, yet few have one. This is the central finding of a global survey report published by UNESCO and the Committee (ISC) on Data of the International Science Council (CODATA) on 6 October 2026. The findings point to a next phase in which the Data Policies for Times of Crisis (DPTC) Checklist would be tested in practice with interested institutions.

Implementation of data policies for times of crisis facilitated by open science toolkit

Supporting the implementation of the 2021 UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science, the DPTC Toolkit (2025) provides an important foundation for organisations to share timely, trustworthy data across institutional and national boundaries while maintaining appropriate ethical safeguards. The DPTC Toolkit comprises a factsheet (concise briefing on the importance and the principles of DPTC), guidance (structured playbook for policy codesign detailing roles and responsibilities) and a checklist (practical tool). The present survey establishes if and how the practices on the checklist are already in place and identifies where guidance is needed for implementation.
About the survey

About the survey

The UNESCO-CODATA report presents the results of the survey on data policies for times of crisis facilitated by Open Science, conducted online between March and June 2026. The survey translated the ten dimensions of the DPTC checklist into a self-assessment instrument, offering a globally sourced baseline as the 146 complete responses received are from 60 countries spanning all five UNESCO regions.
Demand for practical guidance

Demand for practical guidance

Some 78% of respondents considered that a crisis data checklist would be beneficial to their work, while only 22% reported already having one. Respondents without a checklist most often reported the DPTC dimensions as partially addressed. Those with one were more likely to report them as completely addressed. The survey does not show that documentation leads to stronger practice, but pilot implementations can test this association.

Next steps

In the next phase of the initiative, UNESCO and CODATA will involve conducting pilot studies based on the existing DPTC checklist with interested institutions.

1. Pilot implementation: Interested institutions should identify a manageable task, and using the current DPTC Toolkit decide which actions are relevant and should be prioritised.
2. Feedback: Short feedback discussions will help determine competence, responsibilities and barriers to collaboration.
3. Case studies and lessons identified: case studies should document precisely the situation from beginning to end, including negative findings. From there, short implementation guidance, targeted training as well as practical exchange can help support data policy resiliency.
4. DPTC Toolkit refinement: evidence from the pilots informs updates to the Toolkit.

Further details on the pilot phase will be announced shortly through UNESCO, CODATA and partner networks. Institutions wishing to express early interest can contact openscience@unesco.org.

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FDO Specifications 2026, 30 October 2026, 14:30 CET
Speakers: Sven Bingert, Jana Böhm, Maximilian Inckmann
Registration Link →
Announcement →
 

In 2025 the FDO Forum started developing a new, coherent, consolidated and integrated
FDO Specification document that

• replaces the partly outdated and inconsistent set of documents that were written during
• the first 5 years of work
• integrates the various FDO implementations which have been developed in the
• meantime
• is much more formal allowing to develop FDO applications.

The new specification document follows W3C style specification documents. These updated specifications are built on five years of practical experience in creating, managing, and utilizing FDOs across various projects as presented at the FDO conferences in Leiden, Berlin and Vienna. The new specification document formally describes the building blocks of FDOs, how to process and validate FDOs, and how to adopt the specifications whilst ensuring interoperability. The link to the specification document is here: https://fairdo-org.github.io/fdo-architecture-spec/

This webinar will be a milestone in the improvement and stabilisation of the FDO specifications. The presentations will provide information about the recent changes and invite feedback from the audience. We anticipate an engaged Q&A session!

Other upcoming FDO Webinars:

Scientific Motivation to use FDOs, 19 November 2026, 16:00 CET
Speakers: Laura Biven, Dimitris Koureas, Sharif Islam, Massimo Fares
Registration Link →

FDOs for content, permission and operations, 9 December 20206, 15:00 CET
Speaker: Erik Schultes
Registration Link →

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	Title: What Do We Mean by ‘Version’? Actionable Guidelines for the Versioning of Data Author: Jens Klump, Lesley Wyborn, Mingfang Wu, Dorothea Strecker, Heinz Pampel, Laura Rothfritz URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-037
	Title: Toward a Standardized Framework for Benthic Mapping Data and Metadata Integration in Florida Author: Anna E. Braswell, Vincent Lecours, Xiaohui Qiao, Ana Carolina Peralta Brichtova, Steven D. Meyers, Frank E. Muller-Karger, Brad E. Rosenheim, Brian K. Walker, Gary A. Zarillo, René Baumstark, Yonggang Liu, Dave Reed, Sean Beckwith, John M. Jaeger URL: http://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2026-036

The post Read Now – September 2026: Publications in the Data Science Journal appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

The post Read Now – Disaster Risk Reduction and Open Data Newsletter: September 2026 Edition appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

CDIF DCAT-Syntax Core and Discovery Profiles: Development Plan: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22942627 

This document is the first in an irregular series of updates on development plans for the Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF). It briefly outlines the status and intended process for development of CDIF Core and Discovery profiles based on the W3C DCAT specification, as opposed to Schema.org. While Schema.org was initially chosen as the basis for core CDIF metadata, given its widespread adoption and support in various search engines and other widely used Web-based applications, the need for a similar foundation implemented using DCAT has become apparent, as its adoption is now becoming much broader.

The intention is that a point-for-point correspondence between the two sets of profiles — for DCAT on the one hand and for Schema.org on the other — can be established, and that free converters provided to enable users to produce and consume either flavour as needed. While a single agreed standard is always ideal, it is not in this case a reality, so this approach is seen as necessary.

A major driver here is provided by the EOSC projects now using the CDIF Guidelines (CDIF v.1.1 https://cdif.codata.org), notably Climate Adapt-4-EOSC and CDIF4EOSC. EOSC will use DCAT-AP as a foundational standard, and a version of the CDIF Guidelines intended for use within EOSC needs to recognize this. Additionally, many domain application profiles and national application profiles are emerging, including in the US. Support for DCAT is also becoming more prevalent, with platforms like CKAN adopting it. The case for having equivalent profiles based on both syntaxes is clear.

The update describes DCAT Application Profiles of interest, indicates an important current gap and existing work to address this and the overall development plans. This work will be initiated immediately in the context of the CDIF4EOSC project and will be discussed in detail at a forthcoming Dagstuhl workshop.  It is intended to release the DCAT-native CDIF Profiles for Core and Discovery for public review in Q1 2027.

The post CDIF DCAT-Syntax Core and Discovery Profiles: Development Plan appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

Registration will close at 09:00 UTC Friday 25 September.

In person registration is open for this informative and interactive workshop about the Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF) and the CDIF4EOSC project. The workshop is being held as an RDA 27th Plenary Meeting Co-located Event.

Date: Friday, 9th October 2026
Time: 09:30-16:00 BST
Location: The Long Room, Kia Oval Cricket Ground
Format: In person only

Details: The distinct approach of the CDIF4EOSC project is to build on the Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF). The project will extend the CDIF recommendations, adding profiles and guidelines, and use case based examples, to form a comprehensive and actionable playbook for FAIR Integration in the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) and beyond.

Working with three Use Cases on ocean sciences, climate adaptation and safe-and-sustainable by design materials development, CDIF4EOSC will develop a suite of AI-assisted FAIRification tools and services and ensure integration with the EOSC Federation, EOSC Nodes and the Common European Data Spaces. There will also be implementations and partnerships beyond Europe, including with the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC).

This event will showcase the project and its approach, including CDIF tutorials and interactive sessions on key CDIF components and activities, including: integration with federated research infrastructures, development pathways for CDIF tools and services, AI-readiness, intelligently-managed access rights, data quality and provenance.

The CDIF4EOSC Use Cases will discuss their requirements and there will be presentations on CDIF implementations in a range of research areas.

The post LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER! An AI-ready, data engineering playbook for FAIR Integration in EOSC and beyond: CDIF4EOSC Workshop, London, Friday 9 October appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

Excellent opportunities for experienced professionals seeking a full-time, fixed-term role and eager to work in an innovative international team of experts to advance science and the use of data to address today’s global, multifaceted societal challenges.

CODATA is recruiting for two roles:

1. Project officer, Data Policy, Legal and Organisational Interoperability
2. Technical Expert, Data, Metadata and Trustworthy AI

Please see the further details for each role on the CODATA website.

How to apply:

Applicants are requested to address the job description, qualifications, knowledge and skills requirements in a cover letter (maximum two pages), which should include summaries and links to relevant work; and a curriculum vitae (maximum four pages) with the name and contact details of three referees; and a sample document summarising a recent project or contributions to an open source initiative). Deadline for applications, 28 September 2026.

Questions can be directed to apply@codata.org.

Applications should ONLY be submitted via email to apply@codata.org.  Incomplete applications will not be considered.

The post Career Opportunities at CODATA! Deadline approaching, 28 September appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

Version 1.1 consists of profiles for JSON-LD implementation in support of cross-domain FAIR systems and applications:

Core (Schema.org) – basic general and administrative metadata
Discovery (Schema.org) – support for detailed cataloging and search
Concept Scheme (SKOS, OWL, XKOS) – Ontologies, glossaries, and other types of controlled vocabularies
Codelist (SKOS) – enumerated values for populating variables
Data Description (Schema.org/DDI-CDI) – describing data sets, including structural and physical information, plus links to semantics
Data Structure (DDI-CDI) – description of reusable data structures and variables
Manifest (RO Crate) – Packaging of related sets of metadata and data

Version 1.1 also includes guidelines for data access using ODRL, and guidance regarding time, geography, and units of measure. These areas and some additional ones (including provenance, data quality, mappings, etc.) are now being actively developed within the CDIF4EOSC project for upcoming releases of the CDIF guidelines. Work is also being undertaken to produce a DCAT native version of Core and Discovery.

Each profile gives a subset of fields and specific guidance on interoperable implementation for large-scale exchange of FAIR resources between different domains, infrastructures, and communities. It is a practical realization of a technical “lingua franca” based on common, domain-neutral  specifications.

For more information, please contact cdif-feedback@codata.org

The post CDIF Version 1.1 Now Final appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

Two sessions, one message

CODATA’s DPTC work was presented first at the ISC session on 16 July. In the first panel, Prof Virginia Murray, as chair of the UNDRR-ISC HIP Steering Committee, shared the UNDRR-ISC Hazard Information Profiles update 2025 (HIPs). In the second panel, Prof Burçak Başbuğ gave examples from the recovery process after the 2023 Kahramanmaras earthquakes. 

On 17 July, the thematic session at UNESCO Headquarters brought the need for data in times of crises  (DPTC) message to a dedicated 75-minute hybrid slot in Room XI, opened by Dr Ezra Clark (Chief of Section, Research, Governance and Diplomacy, UNESCO) and closed by Dr Simon Hodson (Executive Director, CODATA). Together, the two sessions made the case that open science is not an abstract ideal for times of crisis — it is operational infrastructure, and the DPTC Toolkit is one attempt to help build it.

The DPTC Toolkit itself — a factsheet, a guidance document and a checklist — was published as part of the UNESCO Open Science Toolkit in June 2025. It is grounded in the 2021 UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science and aligned with the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), CARE (Collective benefit, Authority to control, Responsibility, Ethics) and TRUST (Transparency, Responsibility, User focus, Sustainability, Technology) principles — three frameworks that, taken together, ask not only whether data can be shared, but whether it should be, and on whose terms. 

Putting the Toolkit to the test: the first global survey

The centrepiece of the 17 July session was the presentation of findings from the first global UNESCO-CODATA survey on the implementation of data policies for times of crisis, conducted between March and June 2026 and presented by Ms Rania Sabo (UNESCO) and Prof Burçak Başbuğ Erkan (METU Department of Statistics; Co-Chair, CODATA International Data Policy Committee).

To read more, go to the CODATA blog

The post From Checklists to Crisis Response: CODATA and UNESCO Present the First Global Survey on Data Policies for Times of Crisis appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.

Excellent opportunity for an experienced professional seeking a full-time, fixed-term role and eager to work in an innovative international team of experts to advance science and the use of data to address today’s global, multifaceted societal challenges.

• Location: Paris, France or remote working EU
• Deadline for applications: 28 September 2026
• Desired start date: November 2026-January 2027
• Duration: Two-year fixed-term contract (CDD: Contrat de durée déterminé, based on a contract under French law) in the first instance, but with the possibility of extension subject to funding.

About CODATA: 

CODATA’s mission is to connect data and people to advance science and improve our world.

As the Committee on Data of the International Science Council (ISC), CODATA helps realise ISC’s vision of advancing science as a global public good. CODATA does this by promoting international collaboration to advance trustworthy, equitable and transparent science and to improve the availability and usability of data for all areas of research. 

CODATA works also to advance the interoperability and the usability of research data and is an expert thought leader in the implementation of the FAIR principles and the application of data policy. Through its activities on Open Science and capacity building for data stewardship, CODATA is concerned to ensure global data equity and justice and enable the realisation of the UNESCO Open Science Core Values and Guiding Principles. 

About the role, projects and initiatives:

CODATA is a partner in a set of projects to enhance the interoperability and usability of data across a range of scientific disciplines. CODATA’s contribution emphasises the role of the Cross-Domain Interoperability Framework (CDIF), which provides a practical and developer-friendly guide to implementing the FAIR principles, using existing domain neutral standards, in a way that enhances Interoperability and Reusability and conforms to current good web and data practices. CODATA is the coordinator of CDIF4EOSC, a major European project which will extend the CDIF recommendations, adding profiles and guidelines, and use-case based examples, to form a comprehensive and actionable playbook for FAIR Integration in the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) and beyond. Additionally, CODATA is a partner in the AI4Social+ project, which will advance AI readiness and machine actionability within the EOSC ecosystem. Other active projects implement these solutions in the context of research and services relating to climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction.

The successful candidate will join CODATA’s Data, Metadata and Trustworthy AI team and will work primarily on these projects, under the guidance of the Executive Director, the Head of Interoperability and AI and CODATA’s Standards and Metadata Expert. The role will involve contribution to the work taking a standards based approach to metadata and semantics; developing AI-assisted and software tools for metadata and semantic enhancement; and contributing to CODATA’s work AI-assisted data stewardship workflows.

We encourage candidates from different career stages to apply: particularly welcome are early career individuals looking for a chance to learn and progress their skills quickly in the context of a small, internationally recognised team of experts. More experienced candidates with a strong interest in the topic are also encouraged to apply. The onboarding process will be tailored to match the previous experiences and specific skills of the selected candidate.

This role is a fixed-term contract (CDD: Contrat de durée déterminé) in the first instance, but with the possibility of extension subject to funding.  Applicants should hold a valid French or EU work permit, or be EU nationals.  There will be an initial probationary period of four months in accordance with French employment law. 

Responsibilities of the role: Project Officer, Data, Metadata and AI

• Work closely with the CODATA team and project partners to develop and implement technical solutions in the context of CODATA’s work described above.
• Contribute to CODATA’s work to develop tooling for and implementation of CDIF.
• Contribute to CODATA’s work on the development of AI-assisted tools for data stewardship, metadata enhancement and semantic mapping.

Qualifications and abilities: 

• The following skills are desirable; the successful candidate will have at least some of the skills listed below and a willingness to acquire further knowledge in these areas:
  • Demonstrable experience in software development, databases and repository platforms, management of semantic artifacts, implementation of metadata standards and application of LLMs.
  • Experience of working in a science / research infrastructure provider context;
  • Knowledge of metadata and semantic standards (e.g. Dublin Core, DataCite Schema, Schema.org, DCAT, DDI standards, SDMX/DataCube, ODRL, OGC standards, and other domain specific standards) and of JSON-LD syntax/RDF.
  • Knowledge of programming languages Python, JavaScript, Rust, SQL, containerization frameworks Docker and Kubernetes, git, CI/CD pipelines, Linux CLI, SSH.
  • Practical experience with transformer libraries, MCP, RAG, LLM inference engines, AI Agents.
• A degree and/or appropriate qualifications a relevant area (computer science, software development, ML/AI etc), 
• A postgraduate degree will be considered an advantage; 
• Project and project management experience, preferably in the EU context; 
• The ability to engage and network across diverse stakeholders in science and research related activities;
• Fluency in spoken and written English;
• Experience of group facilitation or moderation is a plus;
• Solid communication and interpersonal skills;
• High-quality desk research and writing skills;
• Attention to detail, time management, creative thinking;
• A positive and flexible attitude to work;
• Ability to handle assigned tasks independently while working in a distributed team.

What we offer:

• Small and people-centric team working globally;
• Highly collaborative environment;
• Flexible working hours in agreement with the Executive Director;
• Competitive salary;
• Work either from Paris office and/or from home (some travel to project events will be necessary, mostly within Europe);
• Duration: Two-year fixed-term contract (CDD: Contrat de durée déterminé, based on a contract under French law) in the first instance, but with the possibility of extension subject to funding.
• Statutory 5 weeks of annual leave 
• Statutory contribution to additional health insurance (mutuelle)

How to apply:

Applicants are requested to address the job description, qualifications, knowledge and skills requirements in a cover letter (maximum two pages), which should include summaries and links to relevant work; and a curriculum vitae (maximum four pages) with the name and contact details of three referees; and a sample document summarising a recent project or contributions to an open source initiative). Deadline for applications, 28 September 2026.

Questions can be directed to apply@codata.org.

Applications should ONLY be submitted via email to apply@codata.org.  Incomplete applications will not be considered. 

The post Career opportunity at CODATA: Technical Expert, Data, Metadata and Trustworthy AI appeared first on CODATA, Committee on Data of the ISC.