Emerging Trends In Canadian Research Data Management: Highlights From The 2025 Rdm Capacity Survey

In 2019 the Digital Research Alliance of Canada’s Research Intelligence Expert Group (RIEG) conducted Canada’s first national survey of institutional capacity and readiness for Research Data Management (RDM). This survey produced in a series of reports outlining the institutional RDM landscape before 2021 when the Tri-Agency released its national RDM Policy. Since then, all Tri-Agency funded institutions in Canada have developed their own RDM strategies according to the policy requirement.

In the fall of 2025, RIEG launched a second RDM Capacity Survey to assess the current state of RDM support across Canadian institutions, with additional topics on the implementation status of institutional RDM strategies and Indigenous data sovereignty. Preliminary results highlight trends in the growth and maturity of institutional RDM services several years in now that the Tri-Agency RDM Policy is in place. .

This presentation will share preliminary findings from the 2025 RDM Capacity Survey providing insights into how Canadian research institutions are allocating human, organizational, infrastructure, and fiscal resources to enhance their RDM services. We will discuss the coordination of efforts across various institutions, both regionally and nationally, and we will highlight the barriers, challenges, and accelerators identified as needed to further improve their RDM services and reach a robust RDM local support.