Terms and conditions

Table of Contents

About the repository

BExIS is the information system for the Biodiversity Exploratories project, which is funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation). It uses the software BEXIS2. BExIS stores and shares datasets from multiple projects and research institutes across different universities. The repository provides public access to datasets, assigns DOIs, and implements a long-term strategy for dataset preservation and reuse. BExIS is listed on re3data.org, FAIRsharing.org, and OpenDOAR, and has been accepted by numerous scholarly publishers as a trusted data repository. Active curation is carried out for all datasets to ensure high-quality metadata and data.

Project Member

As a project member, you need to create an account and log in to BExIS to get access to all functionalities and information. By doing this, you agree with the Rules of Procedure (Geschäftsordnung). The rules of procedure document is provided to the project leaders who are responsible for circulating it to their team members. The document is also available in BExIS.

Guest

As a guest, you need to create an account and log in to BExIS (check also Privacy Policy). You will get access to all the metadata of datasets and publications. You won’t get access to the data itself, unless it is open data. Please note that no additional guest account is required to access open data, but a data usage agreement is in place (see below).

Data Curation

The Exploratories Central Data Management Team provides curation and support services for all datasets submitted to the BExIS platform. The overall aim of the curation process is to ensure the long-term accessibility and reusability of FAIR research data.

Curation Process & Quality Assurance

  • Technical checks on both metadata (mandatory and optional fields) and primary data (e.g. duplicate detection, empty values check, outlier check).
  • Metadata verification to ensure completeness and consistency with the dataset; submitting researchers are contacted to update or improve metadata where information is missing or unclear.
  • Infrastructure maintenance: The BExIS/BEXIS2 repository system is continuously maintained and updated to support evolving standards, FAIR principles, persistent identifiers, and best practices for citation.

Please note: We do not perform in-depth scientific peer review of the dataset content. Responsibility for the scientific quality, completeness, and correctness of the data remains with the submitting researchers.

User Support

For project members, we provide guidance throughout the entire data lifecycle, from upload through quality checks to publication and DOI assignment. Individual support is available for data-related questions (e.g. persistent identifiers, license selection, data management plans, FAIR guidance).

Non-Open Data

Access to non-open data can be queried within BExIS by project members. For non-project members, i.e., guests, a separate data use agreement is necessary. Please contact the Central Coordination Office (BEO).

Open Data

In order to download publicly available data, you need to confirm a dedicated data agreement, which you will find below. Please read it carefully as it may contain restrictions or requirements for certain uses. There is no need to create an account in the system or to log in.

Data Agreement

General information
The Biodiversity Exploratories (BE) are a research project funded by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG Priority Program 1374). It serves as a research platform for all biodiversity and ecosystem research groups of Germany. This data agreement refers to all datasets collected or produced by all researchers participating in the DFG Priority Program 1374. These data sets are managed within the BExIS platform.

License
This dataset is made publicly available under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). More information: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Co-authorship and acknowledgement
In all cases of data usage, data must be cited appropriately. If data are derived from original data, the rights of the original data are maintained and this agreement applies also to derived data. Co-authorship of the data owner and/or data supplier is appropriate and has to be offered if the dataset contributes significantly to the main message of a scientific paper. The contributions of the BE founders and administrative staff should be acknowledged as follows: “This work is based on data obtained within the DFG Priority Program 1374 ‘Biodiversity Exploratories’. We thank the staff of the three Exploratories, the BE central office and the BExIS team for their work in maintaining the plot and project infrastructure, and Markus Fischer, the late Elisabeth Kalko, Eduard Linsenmair, Dominik Hessenmöller, Jens Nieschulze, Daniel Prati, Ingo Schöning, François Buscot, Ernst-Detlef Schulze and Wolfgang W. Weisser for their role in setting up the Biodiversity Exploratories project.”

Manuscript circulation
In the BE, manuscripts are circulated to members and participants at least two weeks before submission to promote exchange and collaboration. We encourage you to follow this practice when using open data. Please contact our Central Coordination Office (BEO).

Limitation of liability
Every effort has been made to ensure the quality of the data. However, neither the BE data management team nor the data suppliers can be held liable for errors, omissions, or damages arising from use of the data.

Changes to these Terms and Conditions

These terms and conditions are valid from 22.02.2021 and remain in effect except with respect to any changes, which take effect immediately after publication.

Updates:
2022-05-25: License updated from CC BY-NC 4.0 to CC BY 4.0.
2024-11-07: Updated link to DFG “Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Research Practice”.
2024-11-07: Added information about manuscript circulation.
2024-12-19: Introduced non-open data section. Guest section slightly modified.
2025-08-27: Added repository information and data curation/user support section.