Report of the Data and Information Group (DIG)

The meeting of the operational group, ICES Data and Information Group (DIG), was convened to progress and finalize ongoing actions to support all data-related work at ICES. Six key areas were progressed during the 2023 meeting: Data policies and licences, Data profiling tool, Sign-posting of guidelines, Data preservation plan, Governance groups, and Challenges and opportunities. A total of 17 ongoing actions for intersessional work in the group is planned for next year. 

With the introduction of the new data policy and licences for ICES in 2021, a major step forward was made with respect to clarity, as well as standardization in data use rights. A data policy, as well as licences, are documents that need regular review and updates, and DIG proposes struc-tured processes for such updates to ensure that ICES at all times have fit for purpose data policy and licences for data. 

The Data Profiling Tool (DPT) has been in use for a couple of years, and experiences with its use have been made. DIG reviewed feedback from different user groups on the DPT that will be taken forward in an updated version of the tool. 

In collaboration with the chairs of Working Group on the Governance of Quality Management of Data and Advice (WGQUALITY) and Data Science and Technology Steering Group (DSTSG) as well as the ICES Library, it has been identified that the best way to set up a resource collection for assisting data collectors is using a curated collection in the ICES Library. A first version of such a curated collection will be created intersessionally.  

A Data Preservation Plan for ICES is being developed and will be put forward to the 2023 Science Committee (SCICOM) autumn meeting. The Data Preservation Plan will bring together and describe information about the whole life cycle for datasets being managed by the ICES Data Centre in a single document. 

ICES governance groups are generally organized around one product (software, data or data portal) hosted by ICES and allocated under one of the steering groups. To increase dialogue between governance groups, DIG will invite all chairs of governance groups and governance bodies to attend a joint session during the 2024 DIG annual meeting. 

The DIG challenges and opportunities will become more visible when moved to Github over the coming months. The contents will also be updated as part of the move.