EOSC-EST

This preparatory project evaluates the organizational, technical, legal, and financial readiness of ETAIS to become a Candidate EOSC Node for the Estonian and Baltic research communities. The assessment aligns directly with EOSC Federation requirements and Tripartite Governance standards.

To achieve this, the project compares ETAIS’s current capabilities against formal EOSC policies, including the Federation Handbook. This involves mapping existing governance, service portfolios, technical infrastructure, and sustainability models to identify any operational gaps relative to EOSC expectations. The technical analysis is supported by stakeholder consultations with ETAIS leadership and users to ensure strategic alignment and institutional commitment.

The primary deliverable is a Project Charter designed to support a future EOSC Node application. This charter consolidates the assessment findings, detailing ETAIS’s current state, applicable EOSC requirements, and a clear gap analysis. It provides an initial estimate of the effort and costs required to address these gaps, concluding with a formal recommendation on whether to proceed with the application.

Alongside the charter, the project will produce an assessment methodology plan, an inventory of capacity-building activities, and a use case outlining ETAIS’s potential role within the federation. Together, these resources are designed to reduce uncertainty and support evidence-based decision-making for the prospective application.

This project aligns with EU strategic priorities by preparing a high-capacity national e-infrastructure in the Baltic region for integration into the EOSC Federation. Advancing ETAIS toward Candidate Node status directly supports European Open Science objectives, cross-border collaboration, and the broader European Data Strategy.

The initiative broadens the geographic and thematic reach of EOSC by systematically onboarding Estonian research services. It facilitates a shift from fragmented participation to a sustainable, node-based coordination model. This transition provides researchers with reliable access to federated resources across borders, reducing technical barriers and improving data reuse. For national organizations, it creates a structured pathway to adopt European standards and integrate services into a long-term interoperability framework.

Advancing FAIR principles for data and services is a core focus of this work. By aligning ETAIS with EOSC standards, the project promotes shared metadata formats, persistent identifiers, standardized cataloging, and interoperable access mechanisms. These technical upgrades ensure FAIR principles function as strict operational requirements within service workflows, ultimately enhancing data findability, cross-domain interoperability, and reuse across European research communities.

Scalability is built into the project at both the national and European levels. Domestically, the proposed Node model supports the gradual onboarding of new services, research infrastructures, and user communities. This enables ETAIS to expand from a core set of services into a broader portfolio that grows alongside national requirements. On a European scale, strict alignment with EOSC standards and governance frameworks ensures the system can handle increased cross-border usage, larger service volumes, and deeper interoperability with other nodes without needing a fundamental redesign.

To address sustainability, the project analyzes governance, funding, and operational models. It examines how to embed node responsibilities into existing ETAIS structures and distribute long-term obligations, such as service management and EOSC compliance, across consortium partners. The work also evaluates how national funding can support ongoing operations. By basing the implementation roadmap on practical resource and cost estimates, the project ensures that all future steps remain financially and organizationally viable.