Distributed System of Scientific Collections
1,5 billion specimens. 5,000 scientists. 170+ institutions. 23 countries
… in 1 European collection.
DiSSCo
A world-class Research Infrastructure
The Distributed System of Scientific Collections is a new world-class Research Infrastructure (RI) for Natural Science Collections. The DiSSCo RI aims to create a new business model for one European collection that digitally unifies all European natural science assets, sharing common access, curation, policies and practices across countries while ensuring that all the data complies with the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable data).
DiSSCo enters its Transition Phase
DiSSCo -the largest ever formal agreement between natural history museums, botanic gardens and university collections in the world- enters in 2024 its Transitional Phase, an exciting 18-month prelude to the final Construction stage that will culminate with DiSSCo becoming an ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium).
Halfway and looking good! DaSSCo continues building its infrastructure for mass-scale digitisation in Denmark
16 April 2024Mass-scale digitisation underpins DiSSCo's vision of an open system of collections...
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Halfway and looking good! DaSSCo continues building its infrastructure for mass-scale digitisation in Denmark
16 April 2024Mass-scale digitisation underpins DiSSCo's vision of an open system of collections...
DiSSCo Transition Highlights – Latimer Core: Not only the specimen, please. Also the drawer.
8 April 2024Not even a month ago, TDWG announced a new data standard for collections: Latimer...
DiSSCo Transition Highlights – The Digital Specimen: FAIR, efficient, dynamic, revolutionary.
4 April 2024To achieve its goals, DiSSCo is working on the basis of an innovative data management...
DiSSCo and other European Research Infrastructures
DiSSCo bridges a fundamental gap in the landscape of European RIs. Find out more here.
DiSSCo services
DiSSCo is all about services. It will create a unique access point for integrated data analysis and interpretation through a wide array of digital services provided by its community.
Understanding DiSSCo
DiSSCo-linked projects (2018-23)
Building a Research Infrastructure is a very complex task. For this reason, since its inception n 2018, DiSSCo has relied on other partner organizations who, through their own projects, have addressed specific parts of the Research Infrastructure.
DiSSCo Prepare
DiSSCo officially launched its preparatory phase in February 2020 with DiSSCo Prepare, the primary vehicle through which DiSSCo will reach the overall readiness necessary for its construction and eventual operation.
Understanding DiSSCo
The participating countries
DiSSCo is all over Europe: 23 countries and counting!
Understanding DiSSCo
DiSSCo is a RI in progress
DiSSCo Prepare has allowed the DiSSCo community achieve an optimum Implementation Readiness Level (IRL) in the technical, data, financial, scientific and organisational dimensions of the future Research Infrastructure. DiSSCo Transition will serve as a time for consolidating DiSSCo’s maturity in all these areas, prior to embark on the final Construction Phase of the Research Infrastructure in 2025.
Changes in DiSSCo’s governance and funding will be running parallel with its progressive completion of these development phases.
Understanding DiSSCo
A young but mature initiative
DiSSCo RI is a young initiative but it builds on the expertise, maturity and cohesiveness of the scientific community where it took shape: CETAF the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities, in operation since 1996. Representing more than 80% of the world’s described species, CETAF’s collections lie at the core of DiSSCo’s data basis providing millions of specimens of animals, plants, fungi, rocks and genetic resources.
DiSSCo LABS
An open door to DiSSCo’s Technical developments