Overarching considerations of data spaces

Data and technology - and also data spaces - are both: never neutral and always neutral. They are never neutral in the sense that they are always parts of complex, human systems which reflect the values of the people involved. Data sets are collected by people, who decide what data to collect and how. These choices, in turn, are linked to values, they indicate what data people consider important to measure and collect.

Data and technology are also always neutral in the sense that they can be used for purposes that support or go against the values of their users and their societies. A classic example of this is nuclear technology, which gave us both the atomic bomb and radiation therapy to treat cancer.

To identify these aspects for data spaces we use PESTLE analysis - a tool to describe a macro picture of the environment of a data space. PESTLE stands for political, economic, social, technical, legal and environmental. For each section, we describe the (European) values embedded in IDS-compliant data spaces and do not prescribe specific purposes for which these data spaces may be used. This allows users of our IDSA Rulebook to critically reflect the values embedded in their own data space.

Solid values and ethics are fundamental to any technical implementation; their absence has led to catastrophic effects on humanity. The use of data needs good governance goals. We are deeply rooted in the European values of freedom, inviolability, privacy, security, humanity, and respect (without claiming to be exhaustive) and therefore include considerations of values and ethics into the Rulebook, and carefully choose the path to the data economy weighing the impact on people and societies.

P Political

The political perspective in the European Union

Data sharing and data sovereignty are at the core of the European Data Strategy (2020). Recognizing that industrial and commercial data are key drivers of the digital economy, the strategy uses "sovereignty" to describe its ambition to keep control of data with those who generate it.

Data spaces are an important means to strengthen digital sovereignty - a cornerstone of the European Digital Decade proposal as highlighted by EC President Ursula von der Leyen's State of the Union Address to the European Parliament in 2020. Data spaces will empower data users and data holders to establish a healthy balance between the rights and interests of all stakeholders involved. This is outlined in the European Data Strategy - with the objective of a wide use of data.

The European Commission's policy proposal "Path to the Digital Decade" aims for a digital transformation of the Union by 2030. The challenges and objectives are described in the Commission's "2030 Digital Compass". The Commission proposes several legislative instruments to implement the European Data Strategy, notably: i) the Data Governance Act (DGA, Nov 2020) with a focus on ensuring trust in data transactions, ii) the Digital Markets Act (DMA, Dec 2020) regulating data based market power; iii) the AI Act (2021) with implications for AI data governance and data management; iv) the Implementing Act on high-value data sets under the Open Data Directive to further unlock the socio-economic potential of data as a public good, and v) the Data Act (DA, Feb 2022) targeting a wide spectrum of topics, including facilitating access to and use of data by businesses and consumers, and enabling public sector bodies and institutions to use data held by enterprises in exceptional circumstances.

Challenges stem from the complexity of the legal framework (EU vs. national, horizontal vs. sector-specific, economic law vs. fundamental rights, etc.) and competing relationships between stakeholders in data spaces. This highlights the need for legal interoperability: a common understanding of the evolving legal environment, a common vocabulary (legal-technical) and facilitating the implementation of the balance between policy objectives. The realization of data spaces requires policies that can adapt to respective specificities and their dynamic evolution over time, while aiming at a common European data space.

Finally, in the "EU Strategy on Standardization setting global standards in support of a resilient, green and digital EU single market" the EU emphasizes the importance of the success of European actors in standardization at international level. It will strengthen Europe's competitiveness, technological sovereignty, and will protect EU values. One of the priority areas identified is "data standards enhancing data interoperability, data sharing and data reuse in support of the Common European Data Spaces".

E Economic

The overarching goals for IDSA include making more data available to more organizations and ecosystems, recognizing that the availability and sharing of data is a critical success factor for local, national, and international economies.

Economic benefits happen in a data space at two levels: directly through sharing or accessing data that is of value to participants (micro-level: ego-system) and indirectly through supporting/creating a larger ecosystem that benefits all participants (macro-level, eco-system).

A digitally supported value chain can facilitate collaboration and improve resilience by identifying deviations or threats early (for example resource scarcity in a value chain). Access to even broader collaboration can unlock potential when multiple data spaces are connected.

In terms of fairness, benefits can be spread throughout the value chain. Often large benefits can be achieved at a later stage at the expense of efforts at an earlier stage. Consensual agreements in the data space can make this mutually beneficial.

S Social

The social values embedded in the work of IDSA data spaces are European ideals such as freedom, inviolability, privacy, security, humanity, and respect. Issues such as gender equality, socio-economic opportunity, and cultural representation are relevant wherever data is collected. Exactly how these values manifest in each data space is up to the implementer to decide - in collaboration with all stakeholders. The needs and priorities of specific economies, ecosystems, and communities vary. Our overarching societal value commitment is pluralism of interoperable and mutually respectful data spaces whose values and priorities are defined in an inclusive manner.

T Technical

Data spaces should be built on widely established and openly accessible protocols, standards, and technical frameworks. Interoperability standards define the boundaries between two objects that have gone through a consensus process. The consensus process should have a narrow technical focus (like W3C, OASIS). W3C has developed processes and policies that promote the development of high-quality, consensus-based standards, many of which power the web and enterprise computing. ISO and IEC are adopting W3C technology and guidelines for a broad industry use.

Collaborative Development of Architectures and Implementations in Data Spaces

When standards are adopted successfully, best practices show that the industry needs to establish feedback loops. Community-driven open source implementations demonstrate the feasibility of the defined reference architecture. An MVDS (Minimum Viable Data Space) gives a first impression of how technologies can be plugged together. This is the first step to starting projects for specific use cases and gives feedback to the developer community. Market needs will drive the interfaces of commercial products and services. The feedback loop between use cases and used data products will improve interoperability.

Distinguish between mandatory (MVD) and optional requirements (discuss essential principles and optional one)

The "Public money, public code" campaign wants legislation to require that publicly funded software developed for the public sector to be made publicly available under a free and open source software license. IDS-G is where the developer community finds the reference implementation of all components - available under free licenses. We recommend hosting all technical developments there and ask to contribute to further development.

L Legal

There is a strong connection between political and legal factors. Legislation follows political decisions. Besides knowing the existing legislation, the impact of new and planned regulations based on political developments must be taken into account. Political and social sentiments need to be considered.

Legal fields to bear in mind when sharing data include antitrust/competition, data protection and security, copyright, patents/intellectual property. The European Data Strategy mentioned above brings a higher level of regulation to data sharing in the EU, including the Data Governance Act (DGA), the Proposal for Data Act (DA-E), the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the AI Act. If a data space operates globally the legal framework becomes more challenging since each country has its own rules and regulations.

E Environmental

Data usage - collecting, processing, or federation - has a huge and growing impact on our planet. The EU Data Strategy states that making more data available and improving data use is essential to address societal, climate and environmental challenges, contributing to a healthier, more prosperous and sustainable society. It will lead, for example, to better policies to achieve the objectives of the European Green Deal. At the same time, the current environmental footprint of the ICT sector is estimated at 5 to 9% of the global electricity consumption and more than 2% of all emissions, a large part of which is due to data centers, cloud services and connectivity. The EU's digital strategy "Shaping Europe's digital future" proposes green transformation measures for the ICT sector.

The choice of implementation design can have a significant impact on the energy consumption of digital tools. We strongly recommend an ongoing assessment of the key components and technology that determine the energy profile of data spaces and services. For distributed ledger technologies, for example, the main factors affecting energy consumption are the ability to control participation and the consensus algorithm. While cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin waste resources, other approaches may be more energy efficient than existing payment systems.

When developing data spaces special attention should be paid to sustainable digital technologies. AI-based services and state-of-the-art data mining technologies can increase resource efficiency, optimize supply chains, improve coordinate sector coupling and thus lower emissions and add value. Avoiding rebound effects with digital technologies is an important goal. Continuous monitoring and sustainable design should ensure that the use of digital technologies has a net positive impact on the climate footprint.

In conclusion, the overarching considerations of data spaces emphasize their profound role in shaping the political, economic, social, technical, legal, and environmental landscapes. These dimensions, detailed through the PESTLE framework, highlight the necessity of embedding European values, ethical principles, and sustainability into every aspect of their development and governance.

The IDSA Rulebook serves as a comprehensive guide, offering insights and best practices for building interoperable, inclusive, and value-driven data spaces. Whether you’re a policymaker, developer, or stakeholder, this resource is invaluable for understanding and navigating the complexities of data spaces.

We encourage you to explore the IDSA Rulebook to delve deeper into these principles and unlock the potential of data spaces. Thank you for reading!

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