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The 91ÉçÇø Libraries offer an institutional data repository, the , for research data publishing. 91ÉçÇø faculty, students, and staff are welcome to deposit datasets in the 91ÉçÇø Dataverse repository. All data are stored securely on servers located in Canada. Data can be publicly accessible, available to specific individuals, or private/restricted. The 91ÉçÇø Dataverse accepts finalized datasets that are ready for publication and sharing and is not an appropriate venue for storing working data.

The 91ÉçÇø Dataverse can be found by following this URL:

Here are the instructions for creating a draft and submitting the dataset for publication (datasets will be reviewed by the 91ÉçÇø Libraries RDM Specialist before publication):

A few notes:

• Any data format can be deposited in the 91ÉçÇø Dataverse collection, but there is a limitation on the file size (each file must be 5GB or smaller).
• Once a dataset is published, it cannot be unpublished - this action is irreversible.
• The default license is CC-0 public domain, meaning you would give up all copyright. If you want a different license, for example CC-BY, make sure to change this when uploading the dataset draft.
• The 91ÉçÇø Dataverse does NOT accept content that contains confidential or sensitive information. If applicable, depositors must submit a blank copy of their REB-approved consent form for review by the 91ÉçÇø Libraries Dataverse Administrator before the dataset is published (rdm.library [at] mcgill.ca). The 91ÉçÇø Libraries Dataverse Administrator may request direct confirmation from the REB of record prior to publishing the dataset.

NOTE: Borealis does not accept deposits that could directly or indirectly identify a person or people, except where the release of such identifying information has no potential for constituting an unwarranted invasion of privacy and/or breach of confidentiality. In most cases, free, prior, and informed consent must be obtained from research participants, and data must be anonymized before deposit and sharing in Borealis.

If your data meets the following conditions, you may be able to deposit your data in Borealis:

• You and/or your research group has received approval for deposit in Borealis by your institution’s Research Ethics Board (REB)

AND, in accordance with Borealis Terms of Use:

• The release of such identifying information has no potential risk for constituting an unwarranted invasion of privacy and/or breach of confidentiality.

OR

• Where applicable, steps have been taken to anonymize the data (in accordance with institutional policies and provincial and/or legal requirements).

The 91ÉçÇø Dataverse can be used to share anonymized or non-confidential data only. Depositors are required to remove, replace, or redact directly and indirectly identifying information from datasets prior to upload, except where the release of such identifying information has no potential for constituting an unwarranted invasion of privacy and/or breach of confidentiality, such as meeting at least one of the following criteria:

• The information has been previously released to the public.
• The information describes public figures, where it relates to their public roles and other non-sensitive subjects.
• A sufficient length of time has passed since the collection of the information so that it can be considered historic.
• All identified participants have given explicit informed consent allowing the public release of their information via Borealis Dataverse.
• All information was collected with an explicit statement concerning its public nature, such as information collected for governmental regulatory purposes.
• For federal records (i.e., Content created by a Canadian federal government agency or under a federal contract) only, all identified subjects are deceased and no federal statute explicitly restricts the release of that information.

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All data deposits should align to terms agreed upon when obtaining ethics approval from the 91ÉçÇø Research Ethics Board Office. Depositors should also abide by the 91ÉçÇø Policy on the Ethical Conduct of Research Involving Human Subjects. For options regarding sharing or storing sensitive or confidential data (containing personally identifiable information such as health records, etc.), contact the Libraries RDM Specialist directly to find out about the options for managing this kind of data outside of Dataverse.

For non-human data:

Some data from or about non-human participants can be considered sensitive or confidential (for example: locations of species at risk data, data that poses a risk to national security, etc.). If you are not sure, please confirm with the RDM Specialist at 91ÉçÇø.

How to deposit:

• Create a Dataverse account by logging in (go to log in page and select 91ÉçÇø from the drop-down under "Your Institution" and it will log you in automatically via single-sign on or you will be prompted to log in via 91ÉçÇø single-sign on):
• When you’re logged in, go to the main 91ÉçÇø Dataverse page and you should see an Add Data button (). You can create a draft by clicking on that button and filling out the information/uploading files.
• Provide a descriptive title for the dataset and enough information in the description for other users to understand where the information comes from, how it was collected, etc.

For training on using Dataverse, please see this series of self-paced online modules:

Licensing Your Data

Template license options include:

• CC 0 (public domain, unambiguously waive all copyright control over your data in all jurisdictions worldwide. Data released with CC0 can be freely copied, modified, and distributed, even for commercial purposes, without violating copyright). This is the , as one goal of the project is to promote open science best practices.
• CC BY (This license lets others distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation.)
• CC BY-NC (This license lets others remix, adapt, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.)
• CC BY-SA (This license lets others remix, adapt, and build upon your work even for commercial purposes, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms)
• CC BY-NC-SA (This license lets others remix, adapt, and build upon your work non-commercially, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms.)

Not sure what license to select? Creative Commons has a to help.

For more information about Creative Commons licenses, contact the copyright [at] mcgill.ca (Copyright Librarian).

References:

The guidelines above have been adapted from several sources, including:

• Borealis. Terms of Use.
• DataverseNO. DataverseNO Accession Policy. Version 2.1.
• DataverseNO. Deposit Guidelines: Prepare Your Data.
• Scholars Portal. Scholars Portal Dataverse.
• University of Victoria Libraries. .
• McMaster University. .
• York University.

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