The joint submission by Open Access Australasia (OAA) and the Council of Australasian University Librarians (CAUL) responds to the Australian Government’s 2026 National Research Infrastructure (NRI) Roadmap Issues Paper Consultation Survey, released by the Department of Education in late 2025. This consultation, which builds on an earlier public survey and analysis by the NRI Advisory Group and Expert Working Group, to which OAA also submitted a response, seeks community input on future research infrastructure needs aligned to Australia’s National Science Research Priorities, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge systems, humanities research, workforce capabilities, industry translation, and emerging NRI investments under programs like NCRIS. Outcomes will shape the final Roadmap guiding long-term funding and planning for Australia’s research infrastructure.
The OAA/CAUL joint submission advocates for:
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Research Infrastructure
Embed cultural protocols, ICIP, the CARE Principles, and Indigenous Data Governance across all NRIs.
Upgrade repositories, metadata, and access controls to support culturally safe stewardship of Indigenous research and data.
Establish a dedicated Indigenous Research Data Commons co-designed with peak Indigenous organisations and aligned with national standards.
Humanities Research Infrastructure
Build interoperable repositories that connect collections and support secure, culturally responsible access.
Invest in sustainable, diamond open-access publishing platforms for diverse humanities outputs.
Develop sovereign, trusted research environments for sensitive cultural and multimedia data, and support emerging digital humanities and AI-enabled research.
Proposed New National Capabilities
Create a national discovery platform to unify and surface Australia’s open research outputs, including sensitive and Indigenous materials.
Provide shared, multi-tenant repository service models to deliver robust, cost-effective, AI-ready research infrastructure across institutions.
Build networked diamond OA journal infrastructure with shared hosting, preservation, and publishing services to strengthen community-owned scholarship.