Reusing Research Data: Opportunities, Challenges, and the FAIR Way Forward

Research funders, institutions, and academic journals increasingly require that raw data, where possible, be shared openly through public repositories. This boosts transparency and reproducibility of research, but also unlocks new possibilities through re-use, i.e. secondary data analysis. When data is reused for purposes beyond its original intent, it can lead to unexpected breakthroughs. What’s more, by combining datasets from different sources, researchers can uncover insights no single team would have been able to achieve alone, or build consensus on complex scientific questions.

Yet, making sense of someone else’s data isn’t always easy. What are the challenges of interpreting and integrating datasets generated by others? Why is it crucial that the FAIR principles – Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Resuable, are followed when data are shared? In this session of Open Access Week Norway 2025, we’ll hear from two experienced practitioners of secondary data analysis. Join us to learn how FAIR data can lead to new discoveries — and what it takes to make that happen.

The presentation from Josef Rasinger is included in this upload and that of Wout Bittremieux can be found via this link: https://zenodo.org/records/17418450.

Speakers:

Wout Bittremieux, PhD. Assistant Research Professor, University of Antwerp. Recipient of the 2025 Junior Research Parasite Award. Wout Bittremieux develops AI-driven approaches that transform large-scale mass spectrometry data into new molecular discoveries in proteomics and metabolomics. He will explore how reanalysis of public mass spectrometry data opens opportunities for new insights, and outline emerging AI strategies to overcome FAIR data challenges such as incomplete and inconsistent metadata.

Josef D. Rasinger has gained hands-on experience in secondary data analysis and FAIR data practices from his work with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the Norwegian Scientific Committe for Food Safety and the Environment (VKM), and FAO/WHO. In his presentation, Josef will highlight the practical hurdles of working with large scale systematic literature reviews and complex data extraction challenges in the context of food safety risk assessments and share insights from a practitioner’s perspective on how FAIR data can support this work. Please note that the views expressed by the speaker are personal and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).