About DANS

Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS)
DANS promotes sustained access to digital research data. For this purpose, DANS encourages researchers to archive and reuse data in a sustained manner, e.g. through the online archiving system EASY. DANS also provides access, via NARCIS.nl, to thousands of scientific datasets, e-publications and other research information in the Netherlands. In addition, the institute provides training and advice, and performs research into sustained access to digital information.

Driven by data, DANS ensures that access to digital research data keeps improving, through its services and by taking part in national & international projects and networks. DANS is an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).

‘Open if possible, protected if necessary’
As part of its mission, DANS supports the Open Access principle, while being aware of the fact that not all data can be freely available and without limitations at all times. Even so, it is important that research data that are not available (yet) or only available to a limited degree are archived in a sustained manner. Therefore, DANS applies the principle ‘Open if possible, protected if necessary’.

Data Seal of Approval
To ensure that archived data can still be found, accessed and used in the future, DANS developed the Data Seal of Approval. This data seal can be requested and granted to data repositories that meet a number of clear criteria in the field of quality, preservation and accessibility of data. For more information please visit the website www.datasealofapproval.org.

Small data projects
DANS can carry out or finance small data projects: such as feasibility studies and pilots on data archiving in a new discipline.

Organisation
39 people work at DANS on a permanently, temporary and/or freelance basis. An overview of staff members and their contact details can be found on the DANS website.