Open Repositories Ireland (ORI) has recently strengthened their collaboration with IReL, forming a key alliance with the National Open Access Monitor. This partnership was formalised in September when Aaron Binchy, IReL’s Open Access Monitor Officer, assumed coordination duties for ORI. Both initiatives, rooted in NORF recommendations, aim to unify Ireland’s open research infrastructure and advance Open Research across the national ecosystem.
ORI, launched in December 2024 under the NORF Open Research Fund, is led by the University of Galway and a consortium of partners. Its mission is to support open research practices, improve repository services, and align with international standards such as OpenAIRE.
Recently, ORI published OpenAIRE v4 Metadata Guidance for DSpace repositories and continues to assist institutions in achieving compliance. IReL and OpenAIRE have also been reviewing metadata and advising repositories to enhance data quality. These efforts ensure greater consistency in data outputs, strengthening the National Open Access Monitor’s dashboards, and making data more robust and trustworthy.
Looking ahead, ORI will maintain its support for the Monitor. Other developments are in progress as a NORF funded onboarding coordinator is set to join in the new year. This project role will focus on repository onboarding, documenting guidance and configuration examples, and assisting with organising training to reinforce Ireland’s network of open repositories.
