Federal Science DataHub background

Shared Services Canada created the Science Program to:

• support Government of Canada (GC) priorities around modernizing and securing research in Canada
• better enable the GC scientific community with the digital infrastructure and services required to support their respective mandates

The Science Program originally consisted of 5 work streams. One of them, data solutions, was focused on building an enterprise data solution for science-based departments and agencies (SBDAs) that addressed common data challenges and strengthened the posture of federal science in Canada. This solution became the Federal Science DataHub (FSDH).

Development of the FSDH is grounded in the following guiding principles:

• co-design and implement enterprise data solutions with SBDAs for SBDAs
• eliminate ongoing investment of financial and human resources in the development of siloed solutions that address similar challenges
• enable scientific discovery and analysis in an autonomous and secure environment
• remove barriers that inhibit collaboration between SBDAs and between SBDAs and external stakeholders
• plan continuously and adaptively to allow for evolution based on SBDA feedback and technology insights and advances

Scientists and researchers influence the solution every step of the way

The Data Solutions for Science Working Group (DSSWG) meets monthly, bringing together approximately 40 people from 16 SBDAs. The DSSWG deliberated and agreed upon the mandate, objectives, priority areas and features of the first iteration of what is now the FSDH.

The FSDH team conducted 2 proofs of concept with over 650 scientists at 15 SBDAs over the course of 2 years to ensure their needs remained at the forefront of development and evolution. SBDA feedback resulted in the following changes and additions to the platform:

• bring your own storage (AWS/Azure/GCP)
• web app hosting (Azure App Service)
• managed databases (PostgreSQL)
• workspace and tool deletion
• publishing to Open Government
• improved support request system, including allowing users to track requests in-portal

Based on feedback from users, the FSDH team has further identified and prioritized features and functionality important for future iterations of the FSDH.