International data governance for neuroscience

Abstract

As neuroscience projects increase in scale and cross international borders, different ethical principles, national and international laws, regulations, and policies for data sharing must be considered. These concerns are part of what is collectively called data governance. Whereas neuroscience data transcend borders, data governance is typically constrained within geopolitical boundaries. An international data governance framework and accompanying infrastructure can assist investigators, institutions, data repositories, and funders with navigating disparate policies. Here, we propose principles and operational considerations for how data governance in neuroscience can be navigated at an international scale and highlight gaps, challenges, and opportunities in a global brain data ecosystem. We consider how to approach data governance in a way that balances data protection requirements and the need for open science, so as to promote international collaboration through federated constructs such as the International Brain Initiative (IBI).

Figure 1.. Neuroscience is accompanied by the challenge of managing measurements and derived data across scales.

A. Neuroscience measurements. Measurements in neuroscience have grown over the years. New image modalities and dimensions of measurement have contributed to understanding the brain. B. Neuroscience data. A modern definition of data in neuroscience is not limited to measurements, but also encompasses, derived data and the analysis software with all the associated metadata necessary to track the operations performed on the measurements to make them suitable for scientific projects.

Figure 2.. Data accessibility versus risks associated with sharing.

This figure shows the reduction in risks (arrow) associated with data sharing and accessibility as a result of a proper International Data Governance (IDG). Without IDG, the risks increase at a higher rate than with IDG (pink). Clarity and facilitation of understanding of regulations helps mitigate risks to individual researchers and institutions.

Figure 3.. The cascade of regulations, policies, and norms facing researchers engaged in international data sharing.

A. Currently a researcher wishing to share data across borders is burdened by multiple layers of regulatory oversight, some of which may be competing with one another. B. With clear practical guidance and tools on international data governance, the researcher can instead stand on a firm foundation of ethical and legal guidelines.