How to (Easily) Extend the FAIRness of Existing Repositories

Data repository infrastructures for academics have appeared in waves since the dawn of Web technology. These waves are driven by changes in societal needs, archiving needs and the development of cloud computing resources. As such, the data repository landscape has many flavors when it comes to sustainability models, target audiences and feature sets. One thing that links all data repositories is a desire to make the content they host reusable, building on the core principles of cataloging content for economical and research speed efficiency. The FAIR principles are a common goal for all repository infrastructures to aim for. No matter what discipline or infrastructure, the goal of reusable content, for both humans and machines, is a common one. This is the first time that repositories can work toward a common goal that ultimately lends itself to interoperability. The idea that research can move further and faster as we un-silo these fantastic resources is an achievable one. This paper investigates the steps that existing repositories need to take in order to remain useful and relevant in a FAIR research world.