Research Agreements
Depending on the nature of the research, the funding that is made available, and the intended outcome of the project, you may need to develop a formal research agreement with your partner. You are encouraged to have these discussions early in the project planning stage, to ensure that everyone is on the same page and to avoid potential disagreements later on.
Intellectual Property
An important element of the Project Scoping process is determining ownership of Intellectual Property. The Centre for Research & Innovation can help researchers navigate college IP policies and facilitate access to resources and external supports.
At Fanshawe, ownership of IP rests with the creator. Ownership as a concept revolves around the ability to “publish” or “exploit” IP. This means that, ideally, there is a tangible outcome of a research project. For instance, a non-profit organization may create a new policy, or a local business may bring a new product to market (with the intention to “commercializes” the IP).
It is important to understand that IP ownership and management depends on context. At Fanshawe, for example, different considerations apply to Teaching and Learning resources compared to funded research outcomes.
As well, colleges do not receive funding to assist with the commercialization of IP. As such, it is very unlikely that a college will have facilities (such as a Tech Transfer office) or personnel with the expertise to provide guidance in this particular area. We can, however, direct researchers to external support.
You are encouraged to review Fanshawe’s Intellectual Property Policy and its Commercialization Policy.
Resource: IP in the Ontario College Research Sector
Further Learning: Intellectual Property at Fanshawe
If you would like to do a deeper dive into this topic, there is a module called Intellectual Property at Fanshawe, available in Fanshawelearns.
This and other resources can be accessed from the CRI Research Playlist.
Data Sharing Agreements
In the early stages of project development, consideration should also be given to how the research data will be shared at the end of the project. For instance, if you are planning to conduct research with human participants, it is important to obtain permission to share project outcomes and, potentially, the data itself if appropriate.
Please review the Research Data Management section of this toolkit for more information on this topic.
This Framework for a Data Sharing Agreement illustrates the many aspects of decision-making regarding data governance and sharing permissions.
CRI personnel can also provide support in this area.
