2025 Network: Open Repositories Ireland

Host Institution: University of Galway

Lead Applicant: Dr Cillian Joy

2022 Project: Open Access Repository Assessment and Alignment

This project brought together higher education institutions and governmental partners to conduct a national programme of repository alignment to deliver standardised metadata nationally while building infrastructure in line with international best practices.

The main aim of this project was to create a robust and standardised approach to national interoperability of Irish repositories, which in turn provides a streamlined gateway to international research platforms positioning Irish Open Access research for a global audience. This was delivered through the publishing of several significant reports and case studies such as ‘Advancing Ireland’s Open Repository Landscape: A Strategic Roadmap’, developing community guidance for OpenAIRE v4 implementation and launching Open Repositories Ireland (ORI).

The network will now deliver a defined work stream of ORI, sustaining and extending ORI’s role in national alignment and capacity-building. It combines targeted onboarding support for open repositories, particularly for DSpace platforms, with a work package on ORI governance to strengthen the network’s structure and integration with national stakeholders.