Don’t Build Another Repository: Building Research Data Support Without Duplicating Infrastructure

Abstract

When universities begin thinking seriously about open research data, one solution appears almost immediately: build a repository. It sounds logical. It sounds ambitious. It sounds like progress. But at Wrocław University of Science and Technology, the Library asked a different question: what do researchers need first – another platform or a clearer path? Our answer was not to build new infrastructure. It was to build support.

The Library launched a dedicated Open Research Data Section around real moments of need: preparing DMPs, understanding FAIR practice, deciding where data should go, and getting help early enough to matter. Instead of launching a standalone repository, we created a curated institutional pathway through RepOD. This allowed us to invest where local impact was greatest: developing librarians into data steward roles, guiding researchers through decisions, and cooperating with the University Project Department so that support begins at proposal stage, not at the end.

This poster tells a simple story: transformation does not always begin with building something new. Sometimes it begins by choosing connection over duplication. Early results include increased dataset sharing and a stronger role for the Library as a research partner.