HOW EARTH SCIENCE DATA INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS BECAME SUSTAINABLE (Invited Presentation)

We interviewed people in leadership positions from 11 infrastructure projects that were determined to have achieved long-term sustainability. The goal was to characterize the approaches that lead to sustainability for each of these projects, and document if and when these organizations had difficulty. The work was originally an outgrowth of the EarthCube Project Council of Funded Projects. Protocol development, interviews, and discussion was conducted by a group of eight people with expertise on different aspects of data infrastructure.

Almost all the studied projects started as federal funded research projects. Most projects (only one had not) had successfully made the transition from a project to an organization. This transition was a challenge for many projects, as it often involved changes in leadership and organizational funding model. The studied projects divided naturally into three distinct types – Database, Framework, and Middleware – and some generalities for success were noted for the different project types. The Framework and Database project were strongly supported by a disciplinary community, which provided the intellectual commitment. Successful Databsase projects were critical for the workflow for one or more disciplinary communities. Framework projects generally maintained active participation of a community by utilizing bottom-up governance approaches. Middleware projects approached sustainability models in ways similar to software companies; success also required maintaining strong scientific partnerships.

The implications from our study include the following. First, science cyberinfrastructure needs resources to develop and sustain itself; the mechanisms/guidelines/funding sources for these supporting these activities are not worked out. At present, many resources are provided through in-kind support from academics, researchers, and their institutes. Second, effort is necessary to find appropriate models that help sustain infrastructure for earth science over the long-term. Third, organizations – rather than projects – appear to provide the best platform for long-term stability for earth science infrastructure. Umbrella organizations may be necessary for development of new Database projects for communities that are underserved in their digital needs.