What happens when the data that researchers, policymakers, emergency managers, and communities rely on suddenly becomes unavailable?
Funding losses, workforce reductions, cyber incidents, policy changes, and natural disasters can all disrupt access to critical data. Yet the consequences extend far beyond the repositories that house those resources. When data become inaccessible, research may be delayed, evidence-based decisions become more difficult, and communities can lose access to information needed to respond to urgent challenges.
Over the past six months, Tessera Strategies partnered with the Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) on the Building Resilience of Data Repositories During Periods of Crisis project. The work brought together repository administrators, technical experts, data users, and citizen archivists to better understand how repositories experience disruption and what can help them prepare, respond, and recover.
What the Project Revealed
The project showed that repository resilience is not simply a question of whether systems work under normal conditions. Many repositories have strong day-to-day practices, yet remain vulnerable when funding changes, key staff leave, or technical systems are disrupted.
Across the project, participants described a community that is deeply committed to protecting critical data, but often doing so under significant uncertainty and with limited resources. Their experiences reinforced that resilience depends on a combination of technology, sustained investment, institutional knowledge, and coordination across the broader research ecosystem.
The white paper brings together project findings and community perspectives to examine interconnected challenges related to funding and policy, workforce and expertise, and infrastructure and access, while offering practical recommendations to help repositories and their partners reduce risk and strengthen preparedness before a crisis occurs.
Put the Findings Into Practice with RCS v2
The Repository Crisis Scorecards (RCS) Version 2.0 translates lessons from the project into a practical self-assessment tool. Repositories can use the RCS to reflect on their resilience under both routine operations and crisis conditions, identify strengths and vulnerabilities, and prioritize areas for improvement.
Version 2.0 incorporates extensive community feedback to make the tool clearer, easier to use, and more relevant across different repository contexts.
The Tessera Approach
This project reflects how Tessera Strategies approaches complex, collaborative work. We combine structured project management with community engagement, evidence gathering, and practical resource development. Rather than treating engagement as a separate activity, we use participant insight to shape decisions, improve tools, and ensure that the resulting products respond to real needs.
We are proud to have contributed to work that not only documents the challenges facing repositories but also gives the community practical resources for addressing them.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to ESIP, the Sustainable Data Management Cluster, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the many individuals who participated in surveys, focus groups, repository assessments, meetings, presentations, and feedback activities. Their experiences and expertise made these resources possible.
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