A collaborative international approach to data preservation and sustainability for the solid earth sciences.

Periods of natural disaster, political instability, and systemic disruption pose acute risks to the preservation, integrity, and accessibility of Earth science data. As research infrastructures and the datasets they curate become increasingly digital, interconnected, and critical to informed decision-making, safeguarding data against loss, politicisation, and fragmentation has emerged as a shared global responsibility. Here we will outline how Global Research Infrastructures (GRI’s), can contribute to a coordinated international response to data preservation during times of crisis.  We will draw on the work currently being done in an international collaboration between four national Earth science e-Infrastructures: AuScope (Australia), EPOS (European Plate Observing System), EarthScope (USA), and Earth Science New Zealand.

AuScope occupies a distinctive position within the global ecosystem of Earth science research infrastructures. As a nationally funded yet internationally connected infrastructure, AuScope combines trusted governance, mature data services, and a strong culture of open science across geophysics, geodesy, geochemistry, and geohazards. Through formal and informal partnerships with EPOS, EarthScope, and Earth Science New Zealand, AuScope is well placed to act as a node for resilient, distributed Earth and environmental science data stewardship.

We will discuss how GRI’s could collaboratively support: (1) distributed and redundant preservation of high-value Earth science datasets across jurisdictions; (2) continuity of standards, metadata, and persistent identifiers to ensure long-term usability of data even when originating institutions are disrupted; and (3) trusted custodianship arrangements that protect data integrity and provenance from external interference, institutional failure, hostile cyberattacks or adverse natural disasters. Such a networked approach will reduce single-point-of-failure risks and strengthen the resilience of the global Earth science data ecosystem.

AuScope’s local contribution currently includes providing geographically distinct replication capacity, harmonised metadata and FAIR-aligned services, and operational expertise in federated data platforms. Working with EPOS and EarthScope’s established thematic and domain services, and with Earth Science New Zealand’s regional leadership in hazard-focused data, this partnership can enable rapid “data rescue” responses, temporary custodianship during crises, and sustained access for displaced or affected research communities.

This collaboration demonstrates how globally networked research infrastructures can move beyond coordination to active mutual support in times of crisis. By leveraging complementary capabilities, shared standards, and trusted governance, a GRI for solid earth sciences can help ensure that critical Earth science data remain preserved, accessible, and scientifically reliable—regardless of natural, global or institutional instability—thereby supporting evidence-based decision-making and long-term societal resilience.