ResearchNet - RechercheNet

Table of Contents

• Description
• Objectives
• Eligibility
• Guidelines
• Review Process and Evaluation
• How to Apply
• Contact Information
• Sponsor Description
• Additional Information

Description

Background

The current administrative coding system used in Canada, the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10-CA, only includes coding for a small fraction of the over 7000 known rare diseases. This prevents determination of the actual cost of diagnosis, care, and research of rare inherited diseases in Canada and impedes accurate estimation of the level of required investment. Retrospective studies from other countries suggest that rare/inherited diseases as a disease class currently account for the highest proportion of pediatric mortality and hospital bed occupancy, as well as the highest direct cost to the pediatric health care system.

To address this issue, the Orphanet Initiative developed the ORPHAcodes, a coding system that provides a unique identifier to each rare disease. In collaboration with Orphanet, the World Health Organization integrated the ORPHAcodes in the revision of ICD-10, resulting in the ICD-11 classification, which now allows tracking of rare diseases in administrative databases. However, this new system is not yet implemented in Canada.

Purpose

The purpose of this funding opportunity is to support implementation research to determine the prevalence, direct cost, and burden of rare diseases in the Canadian health care systems. This effort will enable prospective research for patients in Canada by allowing their identification in the administrative databases. It is expected that the new knowledge generated through this funding opportunity will lead to more accurate and equitable partitioning of resources (e.g., diagnosis, treatment, research, indirect support for patients and families), based on the burden of rare diseases and impact on the health care system, patients, and their families. Importantly, the funded research will inform the required adaptations to the administrative coding system used in Canada to appropriately capture rare diseases data.

Role and Contributions of Applicant Partners: CIHR recognizes that a broad range of partners may be relevant to this opportunity and it is expected that applicant(s) describe the role of all applicant partners and how/if they will contribute to research and research related activities. Any consideration of risk and/or conflict of interest should also be explained, as appropriate.

Funds Available

CIHR and partner(s) financial contributions for this initiative are subject to availability of funds. Should CIHR or partner(s) funding levels not be available or are decreased due to unforeseen circumstances, CIHR and partner(s) reserve the right to reduce, defer or suspend financial contributions to grants received as a result of this funding opportunity.

The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $1,600,000, enough to fund one (1) grant at $400,000 per year over four years. This amount may increase if additional funding partners participate.

For more information on the appropriate use of funds, refer to Allowable Costs.

Objectives

The specific objectives of this funding opportunity are to:

• Demonstrate the feasibility of tracking rare diseases and conducting prospective studies in this field within the Canadian health care systems;
• Increase cross-jurisdictional collaboration and data sharing amongst hospitals;
• Prospectively assess the impact of mortality, co-morbidities, hospital usage, other health system usage, and total direct cost of rare diseases to the health care system; and
• Facilitate the establishment of patient registries for potential enrollment by a diversity of people in Canada in clinical trials and to enable patient and caregiver peer-to-peer contact.

Eligibility

Eligibility to Apply

For an application to be eligible, all the requirements stated below must be met:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant (NPA) must be one of the following:
   1. an independent researcher affiliated with a Canadian postsecondary institution and/or its affiliated institutions (including hospitals, research institutes and other non-profit organizations with a mandate for health research and/or knowledge translation);
      OR
   2. an individual affiliated with an Indigenous non-governmental organization in Canada with a research and/or knowledge translation mandate;.
      OR
   3. an Indigenous non-governmental organization in Canada with a research and/or knowledge translation mandate.
2. The NPA must have their substantive role in Canada for the duration of the requested grant term.
3. The Institution Paid must be authorized to administer CIHR funds before the funding can be released (see Administration of Funds).
4. The research team must include an Early Career Researcher (ECR) identified as a Principal Applicant (PA).
5. The applicant team must include team members in the role of PA or Co-Applicant involved in clinical and administrative data management from a minimum of three (3) provinces/territories.
6. The team must include at least one of each of the following in the role of PA or Co-Applicant:
   1. Clinician; AND
   2. Health economist.
7. The team must include at least one of each of the following in the role of Principal Knowledge User (PKU), Knowledge User (KU), PA, or Co-Applicant:
   1. Decision maker or policy maker; AND
   2. Healthcare professional (other than clinician).
8. The team must include at least one patient/caregiver/family member in the role of PKU, KU or Co-Applicant.
9. The applicant team must have a Sex and Gender Champion and an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Champion:
   1. Combined, the champions must have experience in (i) sex- and gender-based analysis (SGBA) or with gender diversity in the community; (ii) fostering EDI in research and/or applied settings (e.g., promoting equitable access to research participation or inclusion of typically underrepresented population groups in decision making), and (iii) creating Sex and Gender and EDI plans for diversity of team composition;
   2. These individuals may hold other roles within the team in addition to standing as the team's Sex and Gender and EDI champions;
   3. The Sex and Gender and EDI champion roles may be served by the same individual or different individuals.

10. The NPA* and the Sex and Gender Champion (if different from the NPA) must have successfully completed the appropriate SGBA training module(s) available online through the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health and submit a Certificate of Completion. Applicants are encouraged to review the "How to integrate sex and gender in research" section on the CIHR website. See How to Apply for more details.

    *Organizations as NPAs: For organizations applying as the NPA, a representative of the organization must complete the training module on the organization's behalf.

11. For applications involving research with Indigenous Peoples the research team must include at least one applicant who self-identifies as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit or Métis) and/or provides evidence of having meaningful and culturally safe involvement with Indigenous Peoples.

Guidelines

General CIHR Policies

Before submitting an application to this funding opportunity, applicants should review the relevant policies and guidelines on the CIHR Funding Policies page to ensure understanding of their responsibilities and expectations.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Indigenous Rights

CIHR is committed to promoting the inclusion and advancement of groups historically excluded from science as one of the means to enhance excellence in research, training and knowledge mobilization. This means recognizing and reducing systemic barriers, mitigating biases, as well as including and benefiting from the full pool of talented researchers and trainees in the system. CIHR’s position on EDI is available in the Tri Agency Statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.

CIHR recognizes that First Nations, Métis and Inuit are rights-holding as First Peoples of Canada and may not consider themselves to be part of equity-seeking groups (e.g., women, racialized minorities, persons with disabilities and members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities). Taking a rights- and distinctions-based approach to Indigenous self-determination in research is important to reflect this position and to strengthen Indigenous health and well-being. CIHR’s commitment to supporting Indigenous self-determination in health research is available in the CIHR Strategic Plan 2021–2031 and the Action Plan: Building a healthier future for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples.

Allowable Costs

Applicants are advised to consult the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Guide on Financial Administration (TAGFA) to determine if an expenditure is an appropriate use of grant funds.

To further clarify, the following expenses are examples of appropriate uses of grant funds, provided they satisfy the principles and pertinent directives of the TAGFA:

• Release Time Allowance: Funds can be used to compensate the knowledge users, including patients, formal/informal caregivers, and family members for their time spent engaged in the research program.
• Examples of types of compensation for patient partners can be found in the Considerations for Paying Patient Partners in Research.
• Expenditures that respect the culture and traditions of Indigenous Peoples, where needed for the meaningful conduct of research. See TCPS 2 - Chapter 9 Research Involving the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada and TAGFA Directive on Gifts, Honoraria and Incentives. These include:
  • Costs related to community mobilization and engagement, including culturally relevant promotional items such as, tobacco, cloth, feasting and gift giving for honoring ceremonies, and cash reimbursements (in a method acceptable to the individual or community being reimbursed) to compensate community participation; and
  • Contracts and/or consultant fees for knowledge translation and communication activities for Indigenous Elders, community members, and Indigenous Knowledge Keepers involved in activities related to the Indigenous community.
• Support for researchers to accommodate diverse populations: training to ensure cultural safety - for example religious and ethnic minority populations.

Use of Personal Information

• Personal information submitted during the application process, including but not limited to information provided through applicant CVs, the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Self-identification Questionnaire and other application documents required by this funding opportunity, will be made available to CIHR personnel for the purposes of future program design and delivery, results measurement and reporting. For further information about the EDI self-identification questionnaire and the use of personal information, see the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Self-identification Questionnaire Frequently Asked Questions.
• Reports may be shared with partners supporting the grant and the Health Canada leads of the National Strategy for Drugs for Rare Diseases (See Conditions of Funding for report details).

Conditions of Funding

• Data related to First Nations, Inuit or Métis communities whose traditional and ancestral territories are in Canada must be managed in accordance with data management principles developed and approved by those communities, and on the basis of free, prior and informed consent. This includes, but is not limited to, considerations of Indigenous data sovereignty, as well as data collection, ownership, protection, use, and sharing.
• The applicant must consent to the use and disclosure of full application and nominative information at the time of application, for purposes of relevance review and/or funding decisions by the relevant sponsors.
• The Nominated Principal Applicant will be required to submit an annual report. Requirements for this report will be provided by CIHR. The template for the report and instructions will be provided at least 3 months prior to the submission deadline.
• The Nominated Principal Applicant along with other team members are strongly encouraged to attend and participate in knowledge mobilization events linked to the Government of Canada National Strategy for Drugs for Rare Diseases.
• The Nominated Principal Applicant will be required to submit an electronic Final Report to CIHR. This online report will be made available to the Nominated Principal Applicant on ResearchNet at the beginning of the grant funding period and can be filled in as the research progresses.
• The Principal Applicants who are successful in this competition are strongly encouraged to actively participate in peer review, and as members of the CIHR College of Reviewers, when invited.
• CIHR is a signatory to the World Health Organization's Joint Statement on Public Disclosure of Results from Clinical Trials ("WHO Joint Statement") requiring all clinical trials to be registered and the results disclosed publicly in a timely manner. For more information, please consult the CIHR Policy Guide - Requirements for Registration and Disclosure of Results from Clinical Trials.

Review Process and Evaluation

Relevance Review Process

CIHR-Institute of Genetics will perform a relevance review to identify applications that are in alignment with the purpose and objectives of this funding opportunity.

Applications that are not deemed to be relevant will be withdrawn from the competition.

Review Process

Peer review will be conducted in accordance with the priority-driven initiatives review guidelines.

Iterative review may be implemented should the review panel conclude that clarifications and/or adjustments to protocol, outcomes, or other proposal elements are required.

For information on CIHR's peer review principles, see the Peer Review: Overview section of CIHR's website.

Evaluation Criteria

To support the strategic objectives of this funding opportunity, the following evaluation criteria will be used:

1. Research Approach
   1. Relevance and alignment of the proposal with the purpose and objectives of the funding opportunity. Alignment with International best practices and standards (i.e., FAIR Principles) are strongly encouraged.
   2. Feasibility of the proposed research approach (including engagement of participants, project timelines, budget, etc.).
   3. Anticipation of difficulties that may be encountered in the research and plans for management.
   4. Strength of the plan for collaborative teamwork, including:
      1. Strategies for communication and collaboration across communities and geographical sites;
      2. Strategies for sharing resources, as required.
   5. Quality and appropriateness of the applicants' proposed plan for the consideration of EDI at all stages of the research process. This includes the incorporation of biological variables (e.g., sex, age) and/or sociocultural identity factors (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity, language, religion) into the activities proposed, where applicable.
   6. Addresses EDI in an informed and meaningful manner through engagement of diverse representation of individuals and/or groups (e.g., racialized populations, caregivers, historically excluded groups, etc.).
2. Applicants
   1. Evidence that the applicant(s) bring the appropriate expertise, experience, and geographical representation to lead and deliver the proposed output(s) and achieve the proposed outcome(s).
   2. Quality and appropriateness of the research team's commitment to engaging a diversity of members, in particular related to how they will address team composition and recruitment processes; research environment; training activities; and/or knowledge mobilization activities. Refer to the Best practices in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Research for additional guidance.
   3. If applicable, extent to which the overall team has the necessary knowledge, expertise and experience to work with Indigenous Peoples in a meaningful and culturally safe way.
   4. Evidence of the ability and commitment (both regarding the activities and allocated resources) of the research team to engage with racialized and marginalized communities in a meaningful and culturally safe way.
   5. Evidence that patient(s)/caregiver(s)/family member(s) are actively and meaningfully engaged in the project.
   6. Evidence to demonstrate the ability and commitment of the research team to mentor and support the integration of Early Career Researchers, patients /caregivers/family members and PKU/KU as active members of the team.
3. Environment for the Research
   1. Suitability of the environment (academic institution and/or other organization) to support the proposed research activities, including availability and accessibility to personnel (including training and mentoring that foster EDI principles), facilities (including host institutions' long-term commitment to the team's research), and infrastructure.
4. Impact of the Research
   1. The project will contribute to achieving the purpose and objectives of the funding opportunity.
   2. Level of integration and cross-jurisdictional collaboration to enable data tracking, access and sharing.
   3. Extent of the role(s) and contribution(s) of all applicant partner(s) in advancing research objectives (if applicable).
   4. Proactive and meaningful consideration of partnership risks, including the extent of real and/or perceived conflict of interest and appropriateness of its management and mitigation (if applicable).

Data Management Plan (DMP)

In addition to the above criteria, reviewers will assess the appropriateness of the team's proposed DMP, using the criteria listed below. (Note: DMPs are not part of the scoring nor the formal evaluation of your application, however, reviewers will be asked to comment on the DMPs and provide comments to applicants.)

1. Extent to which the DMP describes what data will be collected/created/linked, how data will be documented, stored, protected and preserved, where the data will be deposited, and whether and how the data will be accessible to the research team and the broader research community, as applicable.
2. Extent to which ethical and privacy considerations related to data and data sharing are acknowledged and managed, as applicable.
3. Clarity of roles and responsibilities of team member(s) in relation to data management.
4. Appropriateness of the DMP as it relates to research by or with First Nations, Inuit or Métis Peoples, in particular co-development, consent and alignment with principles and approaches of the community (if applicable).
5. Extent to which the DMP aligns with the standards and expectations of the rare disease research field to ensure alignment of the proposed project with other initiatives.

Funding Decision

The names of successfully funded applicants will be published on the CIHR website.

Partner and Internal Collaborator Participation

The opportunity to add new partners and internal collaborators to this funding opportunity may arise after publication. These partners and internal collaborators may not be listed; however, the principles that govern relevance review, including consent to share information and funding decisions, will still apply.

How to Apply

• The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of one step: Full Application.
• To complete your Full Application, follow the "Specific Instructions" listed below, and where applicable, consult the Team Grants / Emerging Team Grants – ResearchNet "Application" Phase Instructions.
• All participants listed, with the exception of Collaborators, are required to:
  • Have/obtain a CIHR PIN; and
  • Complete the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Self-identification Questionnaire.
• Organizations applying as Nominated Principal Applicants for the first time must contact CIHR's Contact Centre for guidance in creating a ResearchNet account and registering for a CIHR PIN.
• When completing the application, applicants must protect the privacy and confidentiality of all team members. How an individual self-identifies is personal and confidential information, which should not be disclosed without consent.

Specific instructions to complete your ResearchNet application

Task: Identify Participants

• List all participants in the "Identify Participants" task. Consult the Eligibility section and ensure that all requirements are met. All participants, including partners, must also be listed in the Participant Table under the task "Attach Other Application Materials" below.
• All participants are required to submit a CV (excluding collaborators).
  • All Canadian academic applicants are required to upload a CIHR Biosketch CV.
  • Knowledge users, non-academics, Indigenous organizations, and international applicants have the option to submit either a CIHR Biosketch CV or Applicant Profile CV (maximum three pages per applicant). Each Applicant Profile CV may include 5-10 expertise keywords; a summary of the applicant's education, current/past affiliations and employment/research experience with effective dates; and any other information pertinent to the participant's role on the application.
  • Patient Written Statements: Key participants that fall in the patient/caregiver/family member group must include in their Applicant Profile CV a description of their relevant lived experiences in the context of the application.
  • NPA categories involving an Indigenous non-governmental organization as an eligibility requirement must include in their Applicant Profile CV a description of the organization and how it meets the eligibility requirement of being an Indigenous non-governmental organization with a research or knowledge translation mandate.
  • Submit Biosketch CVs using the Canadian Common CV (CCV) interface. Submit Applicant Profile CVs by uploading the completed document, in the "Attachment" tab.

Task: Enter Proposal Information

• The Research Proposal must outline each of the elements presented in the evaluation criteria.
• Research proposals written in French will be allowed to submit additional pages, in support of evidence demonstrating that French documents require approximately 20% more space than similar English documents. Therefore, to ensure an equitable amount of space is provided, the following page limits will apply:
  • 10 pages for Research Proposals written in English;
  • 12 pages for Research Proposals written in French.
    Note: For Research proposals submitted in English, any pages over the 10-page limit will be removed with no further notification to the Nominated Principal Applicant.
• References, charts, tables, figures and photographs can be uploaded under "Attachments – Research Proposal Appendix".
• The research proposal should stand alone (i.e., it should contain all the information required to support your research plan and should contain a complete description of your project). All documents must be in PDF format and must adhere to the guidelines for attachments on the Acceptable Application Formats and Attachments.

Task: Complete Summary of Research Proposal

• The summary must include a description of how your proposal aligns with the purpose and objectives of this funding opportunity. Note that your summary cannot exceed one (1) page.

Task: Enter Budget Information

• Complete the Budget Module in ResearchNet for the total requested budget following the task specific instructions outlined in the Team Grants – Application Guidelines.
• Provide a detailed budget justification explaining how the requested budget will be used for all planned activities and clearly justify all budget items (including cash and cash equivalent contributions, if relevant). Please follow the task specific instructions outlined in the Team Grants – Application Guidelines.
• For release time allowance requests, you must include a letter (upload as "Other Supporting Documents" and label each as "Release Time Allowance – Recipient's Name") from the recipient's organization certifying that the individual for whom the release time allowance is requested:
  • Is a knowledge user on the grant whose primary responsibilities do not include an expectation to engage in research (i.e., as part of their regular employment);
  • Has their organization's approval for the research time on the project that would justify the allowance; and
  • Is engaged in the activities for which funds are being disbursed.

Task: Attach Other Application Materials

• Other – attach the following under "Other":
  • Certificate of Completion of all relevant Sex and Gender Based Analysis training modules - Labeled "SGBA Certificate – Name" (mandatory for the NPA and the Sex and Gender Champion if different from the NPA)
    • After completing the appropriate training module that applies to your proposal, you will receive a certificate of completion that you will save and upload here. The training module should take approximately 40 minutes to complete.
    • N.B. The certificate was previously issued as a secured document. If your certificate is secured, to successfully append the document to your application, you must upload an unsecured PDF copy. The certificate can be saved as an unsecured PDF by using print screen or by scanning the document.
  • Indigenous self-declaration and/or evidence of meaningful and culturally safe involvement with Indigenous Peoples statement – label as "Indigenous Experience – Name/Organization" (required if applicable):
    • As outlined in the Eligibility section, applicant teams must include a minimum of one participant who self-identifies as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit or Métis) and/or who can provide evidence meaningful and culturally safe involvement with Indigenous Peoples. These participants are required to provide a maximum 1-page statement describing how the participant meets the criteria of self-identification and/or meaningful and culturally safe engagement.
  • Applicant Partner COI Document – Labeled "Applicant partner COI Document" (required if applicable): Describe the role of all applicant partners and how they will contribute to research and research-related activities. Any consideration of (or potential risk for) conflict of interest (and how they will be managed) should also be explained, as appropriate (Maximum 1-page).
  • Data management plan (mandatory): The data management plan (DMP) should describe how the team will manage research data generated as part of its activities.
    • DMPs should describe what data are expected to be collected, created, linked to, acquired or recorded; how data will be documented, formatted, protected, and preserved; where data will be deposited, who will be responsible for managing the data, whether and how data will be shared within and outside of the funded team/project; and any ethical, legal and commercial constraints the data are subject to (if applicable).
    • Applicants are encouraged to use DMP Assistant to create their DMPs.
    • There is no prescribed length for DMPs – however, applicants are encouraged to keep them succinct and focused, ideally within two (2) pages if possible. Important note: see Additional Information for more details on DMPs.

• Participant Table (mandatory) - upload under "Participant Table"
  • This table will be used for Eligibility assessment. In a table format with column headers matching the bolded titles below, provide the following information about all applicant team members:
    • Name (Last Name, First Name or organization);
    • Role of participant (e.g., NPA, PA, PKU, Co-Applicant, KU, Collaborator);
    • Primary host institution/organization of each participant, where appropriate;
    • Region;
    • Alignment with Eligibility criteria, where appropriate (e.g., independent researcher, ECR, clinician, health economist, decision maker, policy maker, healthcare professional, patient/caregiver/family member, sex and gender champion and EDI champion).
    • Expertise and Experience – Include a brief description of what each participant brings to their role on the application.

Task: Identify Application Partners — Upload Partner Information (required if applicable)

Application partners are defined as organizations, either identified by CIHR as mandatory or identified by the applicants themselves, that contribute cash and/or in-kind resources to specific projects of research, according to terms negotiated by the applicants.

• A "Partnership Details" form must be submitted for each partner providing cash and/or cash equivalent contributions.
• For each partner, upload a signed "Partner Letter" describing their role, activities, authorities, accountabilities, and contributions (including intellectual, financial [cash or cash equivalent] and other resources).

Task: Complete Peer Review Administration Information (optional)

• Applicants are encouraged to provide a list of potential reviewers (including patients/caregivers/family members) that have the expertise to review your application.

Task: Manage Access (optional)

• The Nominated Principal Applicant (NPA) can delegate access to a maximum of five individuals to support the completion of the application. Note: A delegate's access does not carry over from one stage of the competition to another (i.e., from the registration to the application stage). The NPA will need to delegate access at each stage of a competition. NPAs should revoke delegates' access prior to completing the Consent and Submit tasks if they do not want them to retain access to submitted applications via their Completed Activities tab. For more information, please see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

Task: Print Signature Pages

• Signature Requirements:
  • Signature of the Nominated Principal Applicant is not required for applications submitted through ResearchNet.
  • Signatures must be included for all other applicants (except Collaborators), and individual(s) with signing authority from the Institution Paid.
  • Original signatures are not required. The scanned signed signature pages and the Routing Slip must be uploaded in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet prior to submitting your application.

Contact Information

For all inquiries, please contact:

CIHR Contact Centre
Telephone: 613-954-1968
Toll Free: 1-888-603-4178
Email: support-soutien@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

For service hours, please consult our Contact us page.

Sponsor Description

Internal Collaborators

Canadian Institutes of Health Research
At the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), we know that research has the power to change lives. As Canada's health research investment agency, we collaborate with partners and researchers to support the discoveries and innovations that improve our health and strengthen our health care system.

CIHR – Institute of Genetics
The Institute of Genetics (IG) supports research on the human and model genomes and on all aspects of genetics, basic biochemistry and cell biology related to health and disease, including the translation of knowledge into health policy and practice, and the societal implications of genetic discoveries.

CIHR Rare Disease Research Initiative
As part of the Government of Canada's National Strategy for Drugs for Rare Diseases, this research initiative aims to advance rare disease research in Canada and maximize collaboration to improve the lives of those living with a rare disease and their families.

Additional Information

Administration of Funds

Funds will only be released to the institution or organization identified as the Institution Paid. If the Institution Paid is not already authorized to administer CIHR funds, for the duration of the grant term, it may be required to undergo a financial and eligibility review and sign a funding agreement, or the successful applicant may choose to have their funds administered by a CIHR eligible institution. Please contact the Contact Centre to enquire about the process.

Data Management Plan

A data management plan (DMP) is a formal document that details the strategies and tools you will implement to effectively manage your data both during your research project and after its completion. DMPs contribute to:

• Efficiency - identify strategies and potential challenges in advance; develop sound data practices for your research team; prepare data for effective use during your project.
• Research Quality - ensure reliability and accuracy of data through careful documentation of your data collection, handling and stewardship practices.
• Reusability and Impact - improve discoverability, accessibility, and reusability of your data by planning for sharing in a repository; and increase the potential impact of your research.

For more information on research data management and DMPs, visit the Frequently Asked Questions of the Tri-Agency Research Data Management Policy, and the Training Resources page of the Digital Research Alliance of Canada.

DMP Assistant is a national, online, bilingual data management planning tool developed by the Digital Research Alliance of Canada in collaboration with host institution University of Alberta to assist researchers in preparing DMPs. This tool is freely available to all researchers, and develops a DMP through a series of key data management questions, supported by best-practice guidance and examples.

If using DMP Assistant to create their DMPs, when asked to choose a template applicants should select "Portage Template" or, if applicable, their institution's customized version of the Portage Template. There is no prescribed length for DMPs – however, applicants are encouraged to keep them succinct and focused, ideally within two pages if possible. Questions about using DMP Assistant should be directed to the DMP Assistant support.

Should you have any questions or concerns about this pilot activity, please contact our Research Data Management team.

The FAIR Principles

The FAIR Principles for scientific data management and stewardship are an international best practice for improving the findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reuse of digital assets.

Findable: The first step in (re)using data is to find them. Metadata and data should be easy to find for both humans and computers. Machine-readable metadata are essential for automatic discovery of datasets and services.

Accessible: Once the user finds the required data, the user needs to know how they can be accessed, possibly including authentication and authorization.

Interoperable: The data usually need to be integrated with other data. In addition, the data need to interoperate with applications or workflows for analysis, storage, and processing.

Reusable: The ultimate goal of FAIR is to optimize the reuse of data. To achieve this, metadata and data should be well-described so that they can be replicated and/or combined in different settings.

More information about the FAIR Principles is available at the GO FAIR website