CONNECT Magazine Issue 9

THE EUROPE2020 GROWTHSTRATEGYRELIES ONGÉANT

READ OURFEATURE ONWHY ICT ISVITAL TO SMARTGROWTH

CCOONNNNEECCTTTHE MAGAZINE FROM THE GÉANT COMMUNITY | ISSUE 9 OCTOBER 2012

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GLOBAL NEWSNETWORKING UPDATESFROM OUR PARTNERSAROUND THE WORLD

CONTENTS

WELCOME 01

FEATURE: THE VALUE OF GÉANTSUPPORTING SMART GROWTH IN EUROPE 03

ACCELERATING & ENRICHING RESEARCH AND EDUCATION 05

SUMMER SCHOOL BRINGS GÉANT SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS TOGETHER

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Q&A WITH MICHAEL ENRICO AND GUY ROBERTS 08

GÉANT HELPING TO SMASH THE GLASS CEILING 11

CONNECT NEWS 15

PARTNER PROFILES 16

GLOBAL NEWS 19

USER FOCUS 24

COMMUNITY NEWS 26

ABOUT GÉANT 29

CONNECT is the quarterly magazine from the GÉANT community. The aim is to highlight keyareas of interest, provide updates on the project and its vital work in supporting European research and education, as well as give an insight into the users who depend on the network,and the community that makes GÉANT what it is. If you’d like to get in touch with us about anything CONNECT related, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected]

CONNECT is published by the GÉANT (GN3) project, under the NA2 Communications Activity,Task 5 | Editors: Paul Maurice (Task Leader) and Tamsin Henderson (Marketing Officer).

Hyperlinks: CONNECT is produced as a digital magazine also made available in print. To view the digital edition and benefit from hyperlinks to further information, please see:http://connect.geant.net

Subscribe: To receive email alerts to the digital version, email [email protected] with ‘Digital’ in the subject header | If you or your organisation would like to receive printed copies,please email [email protected] with ‘Print’ in the subject header and be sure to let us know quantities and full postal address.

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WELCOMEThe current quarter is once againproving an extremely busy one for theGÉANT project, and for the communityas a whole. As always at this time ofyear the conference season is in fullswing, and there is a great deal oftravelling, (human) networking and theexcitement of new challenges. Ourannual project symposium in Octoberwill bring together around 250participants from across Europe to‘connect, communicate and collaborate’– via cross-Activity meetings,workshops and discussions. As alwaysthe objective is to provide people with abroad appreciation of the project andhow different Activities all contribute toachieving our goals.

This is timely, as we in GN3 are buildingon a highly successful 3rd year of theproject, having just received the highestpossible rating from the independentpanel of experts that once a yearreviews the project on behalf of the EC.All participants should feel extremelyproud of this achievement. After all,GÉANT is a large project embracing inexcess of 350 persons and this rating isa remarkable result. Particular praisewas given to the collaborative spirit andteam work amongst all the partners, andthis is something the symposium isexpressly designed to foster.

We felt that the following extract from thereport sums up rather neatly both ourachievements and our aspirations for theproject, in how we will continue to supportthe research and education community.

“In summary the GN3 project providesexcellent services and support to theresearch and education communities inEurope and is continuing to developand improve its services to keep pacewith the requirements of its current andnew user communities. The project isalso extending its outreach with links tomany other regions of the world. Someof the services developed by the projectare now being taken up in many otherregions and collaboration with theseregions is strengthening the support forcollaborative global research.”

Of course we are not resting on ourlaurels. In this final year of GN3, we arefocusing our efforts on further improvingproduct management; increasing ourengagement with the EC’s FutureInternet Initiative (FII) as well asensuring security and continuity remainshigh on the agenda.

GÉANT of course does not exist inisolation. Quite the opposite: we are anintegral part of the Digital Agenda for

Europe, a flagship initiative drivingEurope 2020 – the EU’s cohesive growthstrategy. Many of our partners arefacing increased pressures andchallenges, and so it is imperative thatwe continue to operate as efficiently aspossible, that we innovate and that wedemonstrate the success of Europeanresearch and education networking andthe ground-breaking projects it enables– as well as the day to day requirementsthat GÉANT and the NRENs support, formillions of researchers and studentsacross Europe. Our focus on the valueof GÉANT is intended to remind readersof the changing environment we alloperate in, as well as highlight some ofthe success stories.

We hope you find this issue of interest,and look forward to continuing to meetmany of you over the coming months.

Best regards,

Matthew Scott and Niels Hersoug,Joint Project Managers of GN3.

WELCOME

FEATURE: THE VALUE OF GÉANTCONNECT INVESTIGATES GÉANT’S VITAL ROLE IN EUROPE 2020 AND HIGHLIGHTS SOME OF THEEUROPEAN SUCCESS STORIES IT IS SUPPORTING

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FEATURE - VALUE OF GÉANT

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GÉANT is a success story. Forthe past ten years, through thejoined force of national researchand education networks, it hasbeen a vital element of Europe’se-infrastructure, providing thehigh speed connectivity neededto share, access and processmassive volumes of data: datawhich is essential to the study ofparticle physics, bio-informatics,the advancing of medicine orsimply enabling arts performersin different continents performtogether in near real-time.Considered the most advancedresearch network in the world,GÉANT has helped put Europeat the heart of global research,benefiting over 40 millionresearchers and students acrossEurope who collaborate withpeers across the world onground-breaking discoveriesand learning.

To quote Neelie Kroes, EuropeanCommission Vice President for theDigital Agenda, by “bringing togetherthe brightest minds in the world, GÉANTnot only benefits Europe’scompetitiveness but is also boostingcollaboration between researchers on aglobal scale.”

TALENT WILL FIND A WAY If opposites really do attract, nobodyhas told researchers and academics:talent is attracted to other groups oftalent, and when they are separated bydistance they will find a way to

collaborate. Perhaps in the past thiswould have meant physical relocation –witness the concentration of talentaround hubs such as world-famousuniversities and institutes – but now ofcourse this collaboration can take placevirtually regardless of physical locationthanks to e-infrastructure. GÉANT’s roleup to now has therefore been vital inpositioning Europe at the forefront ofresearch and education.

It was not always this way. In the 1990sEurope lagged behind North America inits research networking, suffering fromhigh prices driven bytelecommunications monopolies andpoor access for the peripheral regionsof Europe. Market liberalisation, majorinvestment at national and Europeanlevel and successful collaboration haveall played their part in propelling Europeto a world leadership position.

A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE MARKET Of course, the world doesn’t stand still,and Europe is facing stiff competitionfrom other regions. The United Statesand China are investing heavily in ICT(Information and CommunicationsTechnology) as a source of competitiveadvantage (around 5 or 6 times morethan Europe over the next 7 years),putting Europe’s position at serious risk.It is a complex issue including politics,priorities and long term strategy: thoseregions in a position to support theirvision of ICT with continued – andincreased – investment expect to reapthe benefits of a well-equippedknowledge society. Others are in a moredifficult situation, unable to rampinvestment even though the vision isstrong. Europe is expected to build onits notable success to date, and has putICT at the heart of its plans.

SUPPORTING SMARTGROWTH IN EUROPE GÉANT has long been a vital part of European research and education, but how does this role support the Europe 2020 growth strategy?

MAINTAINING EUROPE’S LEADAddressing the crisis we are all awareof, the EU has responded with Europe2020 – a cohesive growth strategy builtaround smart, sustainable and inclusivegrowth. Smart growth in this contextmeans improving performance ineducation, research and innovation andthe EU is targeting increased funding inresearch and innovation, as well asimproved levels of employment andeducational attainment.

Within the area of smart growth, theDigital Agenda for Europe is one ofthree flagship initiatives to deliver onthis strategy. Aimed at making “EveryEuropean Digital”, it is targeting highspeed internet access for all, and canbe viewed as a roadmap for bringingthe benefits of a digital economy andsociety to Europe’s citizens. GÉANT liesat the very heart of this initiative,continuing to address the digital divide– a prerequisite for Europe’s continuedeconomic and social development –and to provide researchers andstudents across all of Europe withaccess to world class connectivity andservices.

However, with the world of research andeducation changing so drastically, andin the context of Europe 2020, the futurerole of GÉANT was re-evaluated by theGÉANT Expert Group (GEG), a group ofindependent experts set up by the ECto “articulate a 2020 vision for EuropeanResearch and Education networkingand identify an action plan for realisingthis vision.” The GEG published itsreport in October 2011 to provide avision and action plan for how Europeanresearch networks should look in 2020(to read the report online, visit theGÉANT website or search ‘CordisKnowledge Without Borders’).


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STEP UP FUNDINGRecognising the competition posed byother world regions, one of the keyoverall recommendations in the reportwas to ‘step up funding’. In particular,several more specific recommendationswere made in this area: member statesmust continue to invest in their researchnetworks; high-end users must bear agreater share of the burden; budgets forinnovation activities should increasesignificantly; funding on all levels shouldbe properly planned for and stable. This last point – perhaps mindful of thecurrent crisis – reminds us of the vitalnature of e-infrastructure and the needto avoid short term funding volatility.

Many NRENs have had to quicklyevolve to cope with the rapid growth indata heavy global research, offering awider range of services to a growingnumber of users, who in turn arecreating a greater volume of usage. Inmany countries, this trend isaccompanied with an expansion andupgrading of connectivity to clientinstitutions and in an ever wideningrange of countries, large users arebeing migrated to terabit networks.

The result of this new generation ofnetworked services has also meant anincrease in staff requirements, yet formany NRENs funding has remainedstatic for the last five years. With theeconomic climate still in a state of flux,further cuts remain a risk, while theneeds of the research communitycontinue to grow exponentially.

ICT VITAL TO EUROPE’SSMART GROWTH Research networks must remain at theforefront of technology and innovation.Our role is to lead the way and act asinnovators whilst continuing to deliver alevel of service not easily foundelsewhere.

While NRENs are designed not just tosupport, but to stimulate research,innovation and flow of content, theability to allocate resources fordeploying new services for users andadd value through services, such asbrokerage and secondary education, ismore important than ever.

It is essential that continued, adequateinvestment at local, national andEuropean level is available to ensureusers benefit from the highest qualityservices. Just as a well maintained roadand railway infrastructure is needed tomaintain an economy, so e-infrastructures need to be upgraded,serviced and supported to drive thedigital economy. The risks of not doingso could be profound: without sustainedand adequate funding, Europe risks notonly losing its envious position at theheart of global research, but also failingto deliver the smart growth all our hopesare pinned on. And ultimately, that willonly increase the pressure currentlyfacing Europe.

Useful links:• Europe 2020• Digital Agenda for Europe• GÉANT Expert Group


DECIDE As part of a unique infrastructure of highspeed networks, powerful computingresources and international databases,GÉANT is helping early diagnosis andtreatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

The Diagnostic Enhancement of Confidenceby an International Distributed Environment(DECIDE) project aims to provide a secureand easy to use diagnostic tool, accessibleby any doctor.

“GEANT has a crucial role in avoiding thefragmentation that currently is in the differentresearch infrastructures and centres. It canhelp to bring together the researchcommunity to share, not only the way toproceed but also the vision of how to tacklethe problem of pathologies in particularAlzheimer ’s disease”.

Dr Isabella Castiglioni, Researcher,Institute of Molecular Biology &Physiology, National Research Council(IBFM-CNR), Italy

EMBL – EBI Working in partnership, the GÉANT andJANET networks provide seamless, high-performance links between the EuropeanBioinformatics Institute (EBI), part of theEuropean Molecular Biology Laboratory(EMBL) EMBL-EBI and scientists locatedthroughout the world, enabling real-time,global access to the world’s largestcollection of molecular databases.

“Our close working relationship with theJANET and GÉANT networks delivers thespeed and capacity that we need, giving usconfidence and allowing us to focus onsharing data to push forward scientificprogress”.

Dr Paul Flicek, Head of VertebrateGenomics, EMBL-EBI.

ASTRAGÉANT and EUMEDCONNECT provided theAncient instruments Sound/TimbreReconstruction Application (ASTRA) projectwith the fast and reliable connection neededfor physical modelling of lost instruments.

"The success of the ASTRA project istestament to how e-Infrastructure can bringresearchers and academics from across amultitude of disciplines together with artists,facilitating their creative collaboration on aglobal level. In addition, it provides aninnovative use for research data, making thisimportant work accessible to the generalpublic”.

Dr La Rocca Co-ordinator of ASTRAgridification

SUCCESS STORIES

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ACCELERATING AND ENRICHINGRESEARCH AND EDUCATION GÉANT and its NREN partners support many research projects, across many disciplines. In several cases, these projects simply would not be possible without GÉANT. This page highlights just a few of the projects we have worked with, helping to enable global user communities. Further information can be found at www.geant.net/users

“Without GÉANT, there couldnot be free mobility ofknowledge, researchers andinformation throughout theEuropean Union. From thatperspective, GÉANT is a veryimportant enabler andcontributor for creating theEuropean Research Area.”

Zoran Stančič , Deputy Director-General ofthe European Commission's CommunicationsNetworks, Content and Technology DG

“The power and scope ofGÉANT ensure Europeremains a central hub forresearch and education,offering the best infrastructureto the brightest minds in the world.”

Neelie Kroes, European Commission VicePresident for the Digital Agenda

“The EBI would not existwithout GÉANT, becauseour primary goal is tocollect and distributebiological data... withoutGÉANT we could not do that.”

Professor Janet Thornton, Director ofEMBL-EBI


GÉANT and its partners connect over 8,000 institutions. ‘Other’ institutions include libraries, government departments, hospitals and museums.

Many of Europe’s NRENs provideconnectivity to primary and secondaryschools, giving over 20,000 schools access to GÉANT.

ShanghAI LecturesThe ShanghAI Lecture series uses the powerof research networks to provide high qualityconnections that enable advanced, real-timee-learning in a virtual global lecture hall, usingonline knowledge transfer tools.

“Artificial Intelligence is a truly global researcharea, crossing many different disciplines andcultures. Bringing this community togetherwould be impossible through traditionalmeans, but the use of advanced technologyand high speed research networks hasenabled us to create an interactive, vibrantcollaboration between hundreds of studentsand researchers on four continents. Thismeans that the ShanghAI Lectures havebecome much more than a series ofvideoconferences, and are serving as thefoundation of a cross-disciplinary, worldwidecommunity that continues to expand and grow,enabled by the power of research networks.”

Professor Rolf Pfeifer, University of Zurich

Green ICTThe GreenStar Network project was createdto prove the viability of using green energysources, initially in research networking,that can reduce ICT’s carbon footprint.GSN uses GÉANT’s high-speed Bandwidthon Demand links to create an interactivegreen network, which includes advancedmiddleware to maximise how renewable-powered resources are used.

“None of this would be possible withoutflexible, high performance internationalresearch networks, such as GÉANT thatprovide real time monitoring and control todeliver a virtualised green architecture.”

Mohamed Cheriet, Project Instigator, GreenStar Network.

DID YOU KNOW?

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SUMMER SCHOOL BRINGSGÉANT SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS TOGETHERBy Pawel Kedziora, Software Designer, Poznan Supercomputing and Networking Center

Advanced software is central to delivering GÉANT’s innovative, high quality services, meaning there are a growing number of developers working within the project, using leading edge tools and techniques in their work. However with developers split between different teams and countries, connecting them is important to driving the project forward.

CONNECT NEWS

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INTRODUCTIONBringing togetherdevelopers from acrossEurope to share bestpractice, network andlearn new skills is themission of the GÉANTSummer School forDevelopers (SDS). Now in its third year, over 20 people from theAutoBAHN, cNIS, GENUSand perfSONAR MDMteams attended the latestSummer School, whichwas held in earlySeptember at the AGHUniversity of Science and Technology inKraków, Poland and was organised by SA4Software GovernanceTask 1.

The SDS focused on key topics relevantto all GÉANT developers, includingSoftware Continuous Integration andDelivery and Testing. On day oneattendees heard from expert speakerTomasz Kaczanowski on the processand tools behind software continuousdelivery, while on the second day RadeMartinovi from Serbian NREN AMRESpresented on DevOps methodology andhow it aids software testing. During theworkshop attendees had the chance toput their new skills to the test throughhands-on coding challenges designedto showcase agile programmingpractices and object-oriented design.

By bringing together developersinvolved in GÉANT Service (SAs) andJoint Research (JRAs) Activities theevent also aimed to increase theadoption of SA4-T3 softwaredevelopment and QA testbedinfrastructure among the growingGÉANT developer community.

CONNECT caught up with RadeMartinović of AMRES and DamianMierzwiński of PSNC to get his viewson the event:

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TOATTEND THE SUMMERSCHOOL FORDEVELOPERS (SDS)?Rade: The first year I came alongbecause I found the topics interestingand relevant and it seemed like a goodopportunity to really get to know whatother people in the GÉANT project aredoing and how. As I’d had such apositive experience last time and reallybenefited I wanted to return - thecombination of people and topicscovered is what brought me back toSDS and Poland.

WAS IT THE FIRST TIMEYOU’D BEEN TO A GÉANTSUMMER SCHOOL?Rade: This was my second time as Iparticipated in SDS2010 in Gdansk.

Damian: This was my third time at SDS.

DID YOU LEARN NEWSKILLS ANDTECHNIQUES? Rade: That would be for sure TestDriven Development (Behaviour DrivenDevelopment), Pair Programming andusing mocks in test. Also my horizonshave been widened by the excellentlectures from Tomasz Kaczanowski –those on TestNG and Gradle especiallymade an impression.

DID YOU LEARN MOREABOUT THE GÉANTPROJECT AND THEIMPORTANCE OFSOFTWARE WITHIN IT?Rade: Yes. Visiting SDS and meetingdevelopers from different GÉANTsubprojects in simulated workenvironments made me betterappreciate the work they are doing and the difficulties they are facing intheir day to day jobs.

DID GOING ALONGBENEFIT YOUR DAY TO DAY JOB? Damian: Yes, it benefited me a lot. I’mnow using the Test First approach andour software is becoming more reliablethan ever before as the code is self-descriptive and understood by allmembers of the team.

WHAT AREA/SESSION DID YOU FIND MOSTUSEFUL? Damian: Definitely it was the CodeRetreat. I learned that communication isvery important as we swapped partnersevery 45 minutes. I’ve also shifted fromworking on the solution to working onthe problem description using tests.This second approach is beneficial,while the first just consumed time wewere short on.

DID YOU ENJOY THEWHOLE SUMMERSCHOOL EXPERIENCEAND CHANCE TONETWORK WITH OTHERDEVELOPERS?Damian: It was very joyful and thisfriendly atmosphere is a strong part ofevery SDS. Then, when we are back toour desks, spread around Europe, it isvery valuable that we previously metface to face. It is easier to work togetherand talk when you know each otherpersonally.

WILL YOU ATTENDFUTURE SUMMERSCHOOLS?Rade: If the circumstances allow,definitely! I’d really recommend it toother software developers on theGÉANT project.

Damian: Certainly!

CONNECT NEWS

Rade Martinović, AMRES Damian Mierzwiński, PSNC

Q&AWITH MICHAEL ENRICOAND GUY ROBERTS

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CONNECT Q&A

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WHY HAS DANTEESTABLISHED A CTOOFFICE? Michael Enrico: Networks such asGÉANT have always been at theleading edge of innovation, introducingnew technologies, such as bandwidthon demand and IPv6 far in advance ofcommercial providers. We want to buildon this leadership and by creating theCTO Office we’ve brought togetherexperts with a wealth of knowledge andyears of experience from other roles sothat they can focus on emergingtechnologies and services. This willallow us to create strategies forDANTE’s mid to long term technologydirection and make valued contributionsto individual projects such as GÉANT.

Obviously the communicationstechnology sector has never stood still,but the rate of change is increasing asnew areas such as those arising fromthe EC-funded ‘Future Internet’programme, the Cloud Services arenaand advanced middleware affect all ofour operations.

HOW DOES THIS HELPINTERNATIONALRESEARCHNETWORKING?ME: The requirements of internationalresearch networking are changingrapidly, driven by major expansion indata volumes and the need forinteroperable, global services. Byhaving a visible focus on technologyinnovation it should make earlycollaboration with both vendors andresearch projects more straightforward.

WHAT MAKES GÉANTSUCH AN INNOVATIVENETWORK? ME: Throughout its existence, GÉANThas been a network built on innovation.Thanks to its unique hybrid architecturewe’re able to support the earlydeployment of cutting-edgetechnologies and services that benefitboth users and our NREN partners. Thisflexibility, combined with high capacity,enables the project to meet userrequirements, whatever they are looking for.

ARE THEREPARTICULAR AREAS OFTHE NETWORK THATDEMONSTRATE THISINNOVATION?ME: I’d pick three specific areas. Firstlywe’re an early commercial customer ofInfinera for its latest DTN-X equipment,which gives us a route to a future terabitnetwork that will meet the ever-expanding requirement for higherspeed transmission of more and more data.

Secondly, we’re involved in SoftwareDefined Networking (SDN), whichessentially makes it possible for variousactors (not just the network operator) tocontrol equipment such as routers andswitches at an intimate and granularlevel using protocols such as OpenFlow.Interestingly, this is being driven byInternet researchers and researchnetworks but the concepts are nowmoving into the commercialmainstream. We’ve invested in

infrastructure to make OpenFlowenabled networks available to interesteduser groups and Afrodite Sevasti(GÉANT Activity Leader for JRA2: Multi-Domain Network Services Research)and myself are speaking at the SDNand OpenFlow World Congress inOctober 2012, discussing the role andgrowth of SDN in research networks.

And thirdly, we’re heavily involved instandards bodies as we look to ensureinteroperability of services acrossfederated networks.

HOW ARE YOUINVOLVED INSTANDARDS WORK?Guy Roberts: Firstly we’re part of threeworking groups within the Open GridForum (OGF), co-chairing two of them.We are also involved in other standardsbodies such as the Internet EngineeringTask Force (IETF) and are members ofthe TM Forum and the InternationalTelecommunications Union (ITU) StudyGroup 15.

Within the GÉANT project the NA4/T4task was created to provide a focus inthis area. As well as liaising withindustry and standards bodies itprovides resources for projectmembers, such as funding for travel to meetings and a task to allocate hours to.

(Continued)

Earlier this year, DANTE – the organisation that on behalf ofEurope’s NRENs has built and operates the GÉANT network – created a function called ‘Office of the CTO’, headed byMichael Enrico, Chief Technology Officer and supported by a team of experts. CONNECT caught up with Michael, and Guy Roberts – Senior Transport Network Architect – and asked them what this means for the GÉANT project and the wider research networking community.

CONNECT Q&A

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WHAT WORK ARE YOUINVOLVED IN WITH THEOPEN GRID FORUM?GR: We co-chair the OGF’s NetworkService Interface (NSI) and NetworkMarkup Language (NML) groups.

The NML group looks at creating alanguage for describing networktopology standard networks to make iteasier to exchange information whileNSI is a new protocol developed tomake it simple and seamless to quicklyprovision dynamic circuits that spandifferent networks across the world. Itwill do this by enabling fullinteroperability between the differenttechnologies behind services such asGÉANT’s Bandwidth on Demand andESnet’s OSCARS. We’re currently in thefinal stages of v2 of the NSI protocol,with a public announcement expectedat the SuperComputing event inNovember (SC12).

WHY ARE STANDARDSNOW SO IMPORTANT?GR: Research projects are increasinglyglobal, whereas by their nature researchand education networks tend to benational or regional. Obviously everynetwork is independent and makes itsown technology choices but needs tobe able to communicate and provideinteroperable services with othernetworks. In this federated model,standards are the best way of achievingthis, ensuring seamless collaboration forusers.

WHAT PLANS ARETHERE FOR FUTUREINNOVATION IN THENETWORK OVER THENEXT 1-2 YEARS?ME: One of the reasons forimplementing GÉANT’s new terabitnetwork structure is that it provides aplatform for innovation in the near term.As well as further research into SDNwe’re looking to expand services suchas bandwidth on demand up to100Gbps for individual users. As wehave direct access to fibre we canprovide access for specialist researchcommunities, such as those working inmetrology, at a photonic level. Thismeans that labs across Europe can link

and run very detailed measurementcomparisons and this directly helpsincrease accuracy in areas such asgeo-location services. In addition tothis, we must not forget that innovationcontinues apace in the higher layers ofthe network stack – especially in thearea of middleware which isincreasingly of importance asconsumption of Cloud Services becomemore relevant to the R&E sector.

LOOKING FURTHERINTO THE FUTURE, ARETHERE PARTICULARAREAS OR TRENDSTHAT YOU AREINVESTIGATING?ME: At present there are three areasthat we’re looking at. Firstly, we’reengaging closely with the EC’s FutureInternet (FI) programme – through theINFINITY (FI-PPP) project – and we’reaiming to increase GÉANT’sinvolvement with FI activities such asthe FI-WARE (FI-PPP) foundation

network infrastructure project. We’relooking to deepen collaboration in anumber of FI areas where it will createvalue for the NREN community.

Secondly, we’re aiming to work closelywith Infinera and look forward to triallingthe next generation of Terabit PhotonicIntegrated Circuits (PICs). Theseprovide the next step up in capacity asyou can double performance throughthe same equipment – we want to be anearly user of this technology as we cansee the benefits it will provide to usersin the longer term.

Finally, we can see the opportunity inapplying the concepts of Virtualisationand, more recently, Software DefinedNetworking to optical networks.Traditionally this has been difficultbecause it has taken some time foroptical networking equipment to gainsufficient agility (whilst remainingaffordable) but we’re monitoring waysthat look to make links between theoptical and packet worlds more efficientand hope to gain some valuable hands-on experience in this area.

CONNECT Q&A

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CONNECT SPECIAL FOCUS

The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) world is traditionally a male-oriented industry, with women making up lessthan a third of its European workforce and even fewer in senior management. As a world leader in networking, GÉANT sees thingsdifferently: in a team of 12 senior leaders (known as Activity Leaders)6 are female, and between them they handle the majority of the project’s budget. But why should this be unusual? More to the point is it important and what does it mean for the industry?

GÉANT HELPING TO SMASHTHE GLASS CEILINGBy Tamsin Henderson, Marketing Officer, GÉANT

ICT IS OFTEN CHARACTERISED AS A MAN’SWORLD, YET HALF OF GÉANT’S SENIORMANAGEMENT ARE WOMEN

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CATHRIN STÖVER GN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FORNA4: LIAISON ANDSUPPORT

Working for DANTE(Delivery of AdvancedNetwork Technology)which built andoperates GÉANT onbehalf of Europe’sNRENs, Cathrin’ssuccessful career spans nearly 15 yearsand several continents. Having createdthe first regional research andeducation network in Latin America aswell as helping set up high speed e-infrastructures in Europe, the US, Asiaand the rest of the world, she is nowproject managing the AfricaConnectproject, exporting and adapting theGÉANT model to interconnect the sub-Saharan African NRENs.

Along with Neelie Kroes, Cathrin is keento spread the word about the highnumber of female senior managers inGÉANT and thanks several of her femalecolleagues for her success today, citingthe relationships as both inspiring andbeneficial for the business. “It was a verylucky coincidence that the InternationalRelations Director for Internet2 (the USnetworking consortium) was a womanexactly my age. I had lived in America,she had lived in Germany during ourstudies, so we clicked, and that made it easier for me in the R&Ecommunity from the start.”

MARIAN GARCIA VIDONDO GN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FORSA1: NETWORK BUILD &OPERATIONS

Marian is responsiblefor the operation andperformance of theGÉANT network,leading a large teamof staff covering IP,transport networkingand security with abudget of around €103 million over the4 year duration of GN3. Her rapid risewithin DANTE began in 2000 when shejoined straight after finishing university.

Marian’s priority is the implementation ofthe new Terabit network infrastructurewhich will future proof the GÉANTnetwork to 2020.

Leading a predominantly maleoperations and planning team, Mariansays, “Although the gender balance inICT remains in favour of men, I alwaystell women who are interested in acareer in ICT that they should not seethat as any barrier. The work is sorewarding and I really enjoy it – in factfacilitating this kind of collaborationmakes me feel that our work has thepotential to make a real difference topeople’s lives.”

MELANIE PANKHURST GN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FORNA2: COMMUNICATIONS &PROMOTION

Melanie leads theActivity that isresponsible forpromoting thenetwork, service andvalues of GÉANT tothe differentstakeholders acrossEurope and beyond, includingresearchers, university IT managers andthe project’s NREN partners.

With a degree in Business Studies andDiploma in Marketing, she went straightinto the fast-changing ICT sector whichshe enjoys immensely. Melanie’s careeris rooted in the Internet serviceprovision sector, having worked for anumber of high-tech start-ups thatemerged along with the commercialInternet.

She says, referring to the independentYear 3 review of the project, “I feelproud that we have been recognised forthe ‘excellent’ communication andworking spirit between the GÉANTteams, and that such a high number ofwomen have been involved in makingthe project a world leader in researchand education networking. I lookforward to us working together to takethe network and services to the next level.”

THE WORLD OFTECHNOLOGY ISCHANGING ICT has undergone massivetransformation in recent years withservices and software becomingfundamental to business and the waywe work and live today. The evolution oftechnology and its modern-day, user-facing role is such that it now requires acompletely new level of creativity forhow that technology interfaces with itsusers, and this in turn requires newapproaches to problem solving,multitasking and the development ofinnovation. So whereas previously a

career in ICT was seen as the preserveof the ‘techie’ hidden behind rows ofcode - a preconception which may haveperpetuated a male centric workforce -today technology is seen as a muchmore vibrant and creative environment,making a career in ICT an even moreattractive proposition for intelligent,creative people – irrespective of gender.

A FOCUS ON TALENT GÉANT focuses on recruiting humantalent based on enthusiasm and skill setto foster a lively and diverse culture witha good gender mix. Studies into genderbalance show that more evenly

balanced teams make better informeddecisions, leading to less risk-takingand more successful outcomes forcompanies. In fact, studies exploringgender balance in high value ICT jobsin both management and at Board levelhave shown that a gender-balancedteam can improve businessperformance and competitiveness.GÉANT’s strength and success is in theefficient collaboration between itspartners and stakeholders, a facthighlighted in the independent review ofthe GN3 project’s 3rd year, whichreported teamwork and communicationbetween the GÉANT projectparticipants as excellent.


ANN HARDINGGN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FOR SA2: MULTI-DOMAINNETWORK SERVICES

Like Cathrin, Ann comes from a non-technicalbackground. Herinterest in technologybegan in 1996 aftershe received adetailed technicalresponse to a question posed about anemail problem. This sparked a curiosityin how information is sorted andtransmitted and she went on to studycomputer science. Today she managesthe largest Activity in the GN3 project interms of manpower and is responsiblefor GÉANT’s multi-domain networkservices.

“It’s great that there are a significantnumber of women leading NetworkOperations positions throughoutEurope. Of course there is always roomfor more women in decision makingroles, but GÉANT helps to address thisby appointing experienced operationsmanagers as Activity Leaders. Thisreflects the flexible, cooperativeapproach of the GÉANT environmentwhich is mirrored in their offering tousers. There is no one boilerplate, onesize fits all approach to anything we do.Everything we do is based aroundresponding to the needs of others andinnovating.”

AFRODITE SEVASTIGN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FORJRA2: MULTI-DOMAINNETWORK SERVICESRESEARCH

Working for the GreekNREN GRNET,Afrodite has a PhD incommunicationnetworks and isresponsible forresearch anddevelopment ofnetwork services, to better support end-to-end collaboration in a multi-domainand multi-layer environment acrossGÉANT and the European NRENs.

As a young child, Afrodite wasparticularly interested in the sciencefields, and particularly computerscience as a rapidly evolving field.After gaining her degrees, she workedand managed projects and services inIT and telecommunications.

She admits that her leadership positionas a woman does raise eyebrows.“While women do hold positions inindustry, and especially within GÉANT, itis not common to meet women in thehigher echelons within the wider ICTindustry. But that is changing.” Sheloves the multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary environment offered byGÉANT and the feeling of givingsomething back to her country.

LICIA FLORIOGN3 ACTIVITY LEADER FORJRA3: MULTI-DOMAIN USERAPPLICATION RESEARCH

Licia is employed byTERENA, the Trans-EuropeanResearch andEducation NetworkingAssociation, one ofGÉANT’s keypartners, and isresponsible for research into anddevelopment of users’ authenticationand authorisation. Having always beeninterested in science, she was curiousto know how things worked andswitched from wanting to become aphysicist to studying computer science.

“Working in the ICT sector can beexciting for a woman and there aremany opportunities for them. I havebeen lucky to meet so many goodpeople, to keep learning new things andhopefully there will be more women thatget interested in technology. Women inGÉANT have proved to be as talentedand capable as men."

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NEELIE KROES, EUROPEAN COMMISSION VICE-PRESIDENT FOR THE DIGITAL AGENDA FOR EUROPE

“As a passionate advocate for women tohold leading roles in science andtechnology, I am hugely proud of theGÉANT women for their outstandingtechnological achievements. GÉANT playsa large role in the ECʼs vision to develop aflourishing digital economy and a powerfulunified research body. That so manywomen are involved in delivering thismakes me immensely honoured and it ismy hope to encourage more women in tothe science and technology arena.”

Managing the vast majority(approximately €135 million) of the fouryear GN3 budget, GÉANTs femaleActivity Leaders manage complex,remote teams consisting of operationsand support staff from across theirNREN partners. Strong team leadershipas well as a strong vision for the Activityare prerequisites for such a successfulproject.

CONNECT caught up with GÉANT’sfemale Activity Leaders to ask abouttheir role within the project and theirthoughts on being a female in the ICT world.


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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: BEST PRACTICE FOR NRENs AND CAMPUS

The GÉANT “Green” Team hasdelivered a third report which describesa wide range of initiatives undertakenby a number of NREN partners, aimedat reducing the environmental impact ofnetworks, in particular addressing theemission of greenhouse gases. Thereport investigates and recommendsbest practice for NRENs and Campusnetworks in a number of areas,including: power usage efficiency,virtualisation, energy-aware trafficengineering, videoconferencing,distance working, green publicpurchasing, and purchasing greenelectricity.

The overall conclusion is that the role ofNRENs and Campus networks, in usingICT intelligently, can indeed make a big

impact on reduction of global carbonemissions. So, just as GÉANT and itsNREN partners have developed world-class e-infrastructure for research andeducation, so too can we show the wayin harnessing smart networking tocombat climate change. The GreenTeam will be holding follow-onworkshops at NREN nationalconferences and relevant conferencesaddressing energy conservation andcarbon emissions – so look out for themor email [email protected] to find out how you can get involved.

The “Study of Environmental Impact:ICT Best Current Practice” available atwww.geant.net or here.

WHAT DOES THE FUTUREHOLD FOR R&E NETWORKING?That’s what the ASPIRE research isfinding answers to. ASPIRE has been “A Study on the Prospects of theInternet for Research and Education”,involving a programme of outreach andconsultation across the research andeducation community, led by TERENAas part of the GÉANT project. Theresearch will culminate in a final,deliverable report this autumn, whichwill be made available in PDF downloadand printed formats.

After the first ASPIRE workshop (May2011), four panels of invited expertsand the ASPIRE team consulted widely,used surveys, interviews and their own

specialist knowledge to develop a set of preliminary reports andrecommendations on four subjects:adoption of cloud services; adoption ofmobile services; middleware andmanaging data and knowledge in adata-rich world; and the future roles ofNRENs. These served as input to thesecond ASPIRE stakeholder workshop,held 13 September in Brussels, at which the final ASPIRE Report was defined.

A summary of key recommendationsand PDF downloads of the reports canbe found at www.terena.org or byclicking here.

CONNECT NEWS

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GÉANT OPEN EXCHANGE PILOT ANNOUNCEDBy Karl Meyer, Product Marketing and Communications Officer, DANTE

Collaboration and connectivity have long been the cornerstones ofGÉANT and with the launch of the GÉANT Open Exchange pilot these facilities have been further enhanced.

The need for multi-Gigabitinternational connectivitybetween organisations hasdramatically increased,placing accelerated demandson research and educationnetworks. Many of theseconnections may only berequired for short periods oftime or intermittently, makingthe provision of dedicatedinternational circuitsexpensive, complex and hard to manage.

The new exchange, based in Telecity,London, allows interconnection betweenorganisations present at the OpenExchange without the need for data tobe transferred across the main GÉANTnetwork, which simplifies the processand frees up capacity. GÉANT Open iscompletely protocol neutral and allowsorganisations to interconnect at theLayer 2 or Layer 3 interface without anyconstraints.

GÉANT Open allows each participant to connect to the exchange at up to10Gbps. This connection can belogically subdivided into separateVLANs allowing the participant to

connect with many other members ofthe exchange simultaneously. By usingthe latest MX480 switch equipmentconnectivity can be made using1/10Gigabit Ethernet over LAN-PHYand/or WAN-PHY framing. Connectionscan also be made from GÉANT Openthrough the GÉANT network – this willallow onward connectivity toorganisations that are unable to connectdirectly to GÉANT Open and furtherincrease the flexibility ofinterconnections.

The selection of Telecity was made as aresult of its highly availableinfrastructure and the presence of amultitude of national and internationalservice providers. This will allow GÉANTOpen to be used to interconnectinternational capacity in a highly flexiblemanner to maximise the return oninvestment in these internationalcircuits.

Uniquely, and as a first within Europe,approved commercial organisations willbe able to connect to GÉANT Open.

This enhancement will help the researchand education community to access awide variety of commercial third partieseither as part of private/public researchprojects or to provide cloud basedservices, private VPNs or anyapplication the organisation needs.

In order to maintain the research andeducation philosophy of GÉANT,commercial organisations will only bepermitted to interconnect at GÉANTOpen with the support and approval ofan NREN. This ensures that investmentwithin the GÉANT project is focused onits core principles. GÉANT Open willoperate as a pilot for the first 12 monthswhilst GÉANT define and refine theoperational aspects of the facility anddevelop a long term business structurefor its operation.

For more details on how GÉANT Opencan benefit your organisation and toapply to join the pilot [email protected]

CONNECT NEWS

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PARTNER PROFILE: THE PIONIER NETWORKA NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE FOR APPLIED RESEARCH By: Prof. Jan Węglarz, Academician, Professor (Ph.D. 1974, Habilitation 1977), in the years 1978–1983Associate Professor and then Professor in the Institute of Computing Science, Poznań University of Technology, member of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS), Director of the Institute of Computing Science, Poznań University of Technology, Director of Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center.

OVERVIEW OF PIONIER PIONIER – Polish Optical Network is anationwide high speed optical networkand the most important part of e-infrastructure for Polish researchcommunity. The PIONIER consortiumconsists of 21 Metropolitan AreaNetworks (MANs) and 5 HighPerformance Computing Centers(HPCs) which connect more than 700universities and research institutionsand offer advanced services by over 2 million researchers and students. The operator and owner of the PIONIERnetwork is Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC).

ABOUT THE NETWORK:PIONIER is based on its own fiberinfrastructure (around 7 200 km) built in atopology of closed rings with fiberconnections to borders of all neighboringcountries. The hybrid architecture ofPIONIER consists of DWDM optical andIP/MPLS transport network layers.

The newest DWDM transmission systemenables the use of 80 10/40/100 Gbit/soptical channels. It covers the whole ofPoland and interconnects all MAN nodes,including branch lines to state borders.The transmission system offers thefollowing functionalities: directionless,colorless, and connectionless withGMPLS control which guarantees toplevel QoS and fast restoration ofservices. Currently the network isequipped with more than 400 10 Gbpstransponders; a new backbonededicated for coherent 100 Gbpstransmissions is under development.

The international connectivity isachieved by interconnecting PIONIER to GÉANT, GLIF and other NRENs with Cross Border Fibers.

SERVICES:The PIONIER network offers a broadrange of advanced and versatileservices for academic and institutionalusers:

• Internet access and services (mail, DNS, IPv6, multicasts, etc.)

• Private VPNs (based on dedicated optical lambdas or L3/MPLS connections)

• Federation of digital libraries• HD Videoconference services• Eduroam services• Cloud services• Archiving services• Science interactive HDTV services.

Moreover, PIONIER offers numerousadvanced application servicesdesigned for LHC, radioastronomy, telemedicine, e-education or e-government areas.

Contact info:Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center,ul. Noskowskiego 10,61-704 Poznań

tel: (+48 61) 858-20-01 fax: (+48 61) 852-59-54e-mail: [email protected]

The GÉANT project is a collaboration between 34 project partners: 32 European NRENs, DANTEand TERENA; and four Associate NRENs. Through the NREN partners, GÉANT delivers a rangeof services across the network for institutions, projects and researchers. In this regular section wetake a closer look at some of those NRENs. All information is provided by the NREN partners.

PARTNER PROFILES

The core building blocks of theSURFconext infrastructure are:

• federated authentication based on the SAML standard, so that users cansecurely access all kinds of availableservices via the same account that they use at their own institution;

• central group management, making it possible for access to content andfunctionalities, for example for a project team, to be managed centrally;

• a standard data interface for exchanging activities, reports, and group information (OpenSocial) with cloud applications;

• cloud applications offered by various providers (for example Google Apps, Office 365, Liferay Social Office).

More information:http://www.surfconext.nl

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PARTNER PROFILE: SURFNETBy: Jan Michielsen, Technical writer, SURFnet

SURFNET IN BRIEFSURFnet operates the national researchand education network in theNetherlands, to which approximately180 Dutch higher education andresearch institutions are connected.These include research universities,universities of applied sciences[hogescholen], senior secondaryvocational schools, university medicalcentres and research institutions.

Almost one million people accessSURFnet’s optical fibre network eachday. Annually, the network processessome 48,000 TB of incoming and36,000 TB of outgoing IP traffic.SURFnet’s main objective is to ensurethat researchers, instructors, andstudents can work together simply andeffectively with the aid of ICT. SURFnettherefore promotes, develops, andoperates both a network infrastructureand a collaboration infrastructure.

SURFnet puts in a sustained effort tocontinuously improve the infrastructureand to develop new applications andservices for its users. It is therefore thedriving force behind ICT-based innovationin higher education and research in theNetherlands. SURFnet also collaborateswith its international peers and is one ofthe leaders among research andeducation networks worldwide.

NETWORKINFRASTRUCTURESURFnet7 – the latest generation of theSURFnet network – was rolled out in2012. SURFnet7 uses 11,000 km ofoptical fibre connections within theNetherlands and for connections withneighbouring countries. Theconnections between the 21 corelocations throughout the country areilluminated with CPL (Common PhotonicLayer) optical equipment. CPL makes itpossible to illuminate the optical fibreconnections with a maximum of88 different wavelengths that cantransport 10 Gbit/s.

Institutions can be connected directly tothese core locations. “GigaMan”connections and/or region rings also runfrom these locations, connecting smallerpoints of presence with the core locationsso as to connect institutions there.

Major features of the SURFnet7 network:

• Fast and secure IP connections for 1, 10, or 100 Gbit/s.

• On-demand lightpaths. Lightpaths are direct data connections betweentwo endpoints, bypassing routers and providing guaranteed bandwidth, high reliability, low delay,and very low jitter. Lightpaths are available from 250 Mbit/s to 10 Gbit/s (soon also 40 Gbit/s and 100 Gbit/s). Researchers can make flexible use of these lightpaths, setting up a connection themselves. This can be done manually but also automatically, for example if a researcher in Leiden wants weekly access to a supercomputer in Amsterdam. Lightpaths can extend beyond a single domain, spanning various international NREN boundaries.

• Multi-service port (MSP): using Carrier Ethernet technology makes itpossible to provide a number of network services from a single physical port. Separation of the traffic on an MSP is based on Virtual LAN (VLAN) tagging. This requires less equipment, and makes it easier to increase the number of ports, i.e. ifan institution wishes to use a lightpathin addition to an IP connection.

COLLABORATIONINFRASTRUCTURE:SURFCONEXTSURFconext is a flexible, open-standards-based infrastructure thatallows students, instructors, andresearchers to work together online:

• using a combination of applications from different providers;

• across institutional boundaries.

SURFconext has been developed forand in collaboration with the highereducation and research sector in theNetherlands. For institutions, the launchof SURFconext offers an occasion tojoin forces and to draw up a commonstrategy for online collaboration. At thesame time, it facilitates lightweightintegration of self-hosted institutionalservices with (commercial) cloudservices.

Contact info:Phone: +31 (0)30 230 5305Fax: +31 (0)30 230 5329E-mail: [email protected]

Visiting address Radboudkwartier 2733511 CK Utrecht The Netherlands

Correspondence address P.O. Box 190353501 DA UtrechtThe Netherlands

PARTNER PROFILES

SERVICESA full range of IP services are providedto all connected institutions, includingIPv6. Special circuits were installed and tested for the Romanian GRIDcommunity (Romanian Tier 2Federation); at this moment there arefive 10 Gbps and two 1Gbps links inproduction service for GRIDcommunities (directly connected to the NREN infrastructure).

CONTACTAgency ARNIEC / RoEduNetStr. Mendeleev 21-25, Sector 1, 010362 Bucharest – RomaniaTel/Fax: [email protected]

Octavian RUSU has a PhD in Electronic Physics and is Associate Professorat the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University in Iasi, Romania. He has publishedaround 40 scientific articles and was involved in several national andinternational research projects in computer networking.

PARTNER PROFILE:AGENCY ARNIEC/ROEDUNETBy: Dr. Octavian RUSU, Deputy General Director, Agency ARNIEC / RoEduNet

OVERVIEWRoEduNet (the Romanian AcademicNetwork) offers connectivity to morethan 100 universities and researchinstitutes, 350 secondary schools andmany other cultural institutions andgovernmental departments. TheRomanian NREN officially started toprovide services in 1998 and now hasone million users, supportinginternational research collaborationthrough GÉANT. RoEduNet facilitatesresearch in its own right in the field ofdata communication, participates inresearch projects and providesexperimental test beds to implementnew services and advanced networktechnologies. The academic network isoperated by Agency for Administrationof National Research and EducationNetwork (Agency ARNIEC / RoEduNet)and in 1998 was named RoEduNet2.

NETWORKThe communication infrastructure ofRomanian NREN is based on dark fiber(5636 km owned by the state companyTelecomunicatii CFR) enlighten byCiena DWDM equipment connecting 40counties capitals using multiple 1 Gbpscircuits to seven regional NOCs. Asbackup for this backbone infrastructure,100 Mbps leased lines from telecomoperators also connect all counties.Some technical figures: 69 DWDM sites,3 100Gbps circuits (National NOC toIasi, Cluj Napoca and Bucharest NOC),35 10 Gbps lambdas, 3 lambdas STM-

64, and 54 lambdas 10 x 1Gbps. Thecalculated metric, according withTERENA compendium for the wholeRoEduNet2 network is 137135 Gbps*kmcalculated by summing all circuitsbandwidth multiplied by each circuitlength.

International connectivity for RomanianNREN consists of one 10 Gbps link tothe GEANT POP in Bucharest hosted byRoEduNet and two DWS connections(2.5 Gbps each) provided by TeliaSonera and Cogent. RoEduNet is alsoconnected, using multiple 1 Gbps and10 Gbps links, to various localexchanges, the traffic through thesespoints is over 10 Gbps.

INTERNATIONALCOLLABORATIONAgency ARNIEC/RoEduNet is amember of TERENA and CEENet andparticipates in various internationalprojects (GÉANT – since 2001,SEEREN, SEEFIRE, CEENGINE,SEEREA-EI, NATO grants).

RoEduNet provides support for allresearch and academic communities inRomania to participate in variousinternational research projects.Examples of collaborative researchprojects at European and worldwidelevel are ATLAS, ALICE, HONE, LHCb,SEE, SEEGRID, BIOMED, developed onthe RoEduNet infrastructure by theacademic community.

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PARTNER PROFILES

AfricaConnect, the EC-funded project toestablish a high-capacity network forresearch and education in Southern andEastern Africa will be launched at twoevents to be held in November 2012,one in Africa and the other in Europe.

The African launch will take place atUbuntuNet-Connect 2012, the annualconference of the UbuntuNet Alliance,in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, November15-16. The conference focuses onresearch and education networkingactivities in Africa and though organisedby the UbuntuNet Alliance, it is hostedby member NRENs. The conferencebrings together practitioners in the

research and education networkingcommunity, researchers, policy makers,academics, connectivity providers, anda pool of expertise from across Africaand beyond. More information onUbuntuNet-Connect 2012 can be found here.

In Europe, AfricaConnect will belaunched at the EuroAfrica-ICTCooperation Forum which will be held inLisbon, Portugal, November 28-29. The“2012 Africa-EU Cooperation Forum onICT” will be an event filled withdiscussion and debate, networkingopportunities and knowledge-sharingamong key stakeholders in the field and

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AFRICACONNECT PROJECT TO LAUNCH IN DAR ES SALAAM AND LISBON

policymakers coming from all overEurope and Africa. The conference willrepresent a unique opportunity for allparties interested in the ICT domain toincrease the visibility and impact of theiractivities, to network and expand theirknowledge. In addition to the launch ofAfricaConnect, the event will see aworkshop led by AfricaConnect with theUbuntuNet Alliance and one led byWACREN, the West and Central AfricanResearch and Education Network.

More information can be found atwww.euroafrica-ict.org

On July 4 in Lima, Peru, the kick-offmeeting of the EC-funded ELCIRA(Europe Latin America Collaborative e-Infrastructure for Research Activities)project was held. ELCIRA is an EC-funded project, led by the LatinAmerican research and educationnetworking organisation, RedCLARA,and partnered by DANTE and TERENAand the NRENs of Brazil, Colombia, Italy and Spain.

Over the two year duration of the projectELCIRA will seek to establishcollaboration agreements between LatinAmerican NRENs and their peers inEurope so as to jointly developtechnological environments and toolsthat can be used to promote interactionamong researchers across the tworegions. Through coordination betweenthe partners and the GÉANT community,the project will build upon the toolsdeveloped in the EuropeAid-fundedALICE2 Project to create a sharedcollaboration platform. This platform willbe coordinated with tools developedwithin the GÉANT (GN3) project in orderto ease collaboration via a portal ofservices, for example a pilot web-conferencing service and Web 2.0 toolsfor group work.

ELCIRA – CREATING COLLABORATION TOOLSAND SERVICES FOR EUROPE-LATIN AMERICANRESEARCH COMMUNITIES

ELCIRA will drive specific actions todetermine the scope of a future HighQuality Video Conference Service(HQVCS) between Europe and LatinAmerica. The project will also foster thedevelopment of a Latin American AAI(Authentication, Authorisation andIdentity) Federation based upon theBrazil CaFE Federation and itsinteroperation with eduGAIN to provideseamless access to informationservices and tools. ELCIRA will alsoseek to increase the implementation ofeduroam® in Latin America.

For further information, [email protected]

GLOBAL NEWSBy Tom Fryer, International Relations Officer, DANTE and Helga Spitaler,Senior Communications Officer, DANTE

GLOBAL REACH

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May 2012

GÉANT and sister networks enabling user collaboration across the globe

At the Heart of Global Research Networking

GÉANT is co-funded by the European Commission within its 7th R&D Framework Programme.This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of DANTE

and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.

GÉANT CoverageALICE2-RedCLARA NetworkEUMEDCONNECT3 NetworkTEIN3 NetworkHP-SEE ProjectAfricaConnect - UbuntuNet AllianceCAREN NetworkSILK-AfghanistanSARInet Network

Dark Shading: Connected to regional networkLight Shading: Eligible to connect

CANARIECanada’s advancedresearch andinnovation network www.canarie.ca

ESnetThe Energy Sciences Network www.es.net

ORIENT plusLinking European andChinese Infrastructuresand Communities http://www.orientplus.eu

CARENCentral Asian Researchand Education Networkwww.caren.dante.net

HP-SEEHigh-PerformanceComputing Infrastructurefor South East Europe’sResearch Communitieswww.hp-see.eu

EUMEDCONNECT3Southern and EasternMediterranean researchnetworking www.eumedconnect3.net

Internet2®RReesseeaarrcchh aannddeedduuccaattiioonnccoonnnneeccttiivviittyy ffoorr UUSSuunniivveerrssiittiieesswww.internet2.edu

RedCLARA TThhee LLaattiinn AAmmeerriiccaannRReesseeaarrcchh aannddEEdduuccaattiioonn NNeettwwoorrkkwww.redclara.net

C@ribNETTThhee CCaarriibbbbeeaannRReesseeaarrcchh aannddEEdduuccaattiioonn NNeettwwoorrkkwww.ckln.org

WACRENWest and CentralAfrican Research andEducation Networkwww.wacren.net

UbuntuNet AllianceRegional Researchand EducationNetwork for Easternand Southern Africawww.ubuntunet.net

TEIN3The Trans-EurasiaInformation Network www.tein3.net

GLOBAL REACH

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In numerous countries around the world,connectivity for primary and/or highschools is provided, directly orindirectly, by National Research andEducation Networks (NRENs). By usingresearch and education connectivity,the ability of classroom teachers andtheir students to interact with otherschools and classes around the world isgreatly enhanced by providing themwith the reliability and bandwidthrequired for collaboration tools such asvideoconferencing. Bringing studentstogether in such ways can help breakdown cultural barriers and bring aboutgreater understanding of other peoplesaround the world.

However, for teachers wishing to set upan e-exchange with another schoolelsewhere in the world, it is not easy tofind potential project partners. Often,the ability to find a suitable classdepends on the teacher already havinga contact.

On September 20, a videoconference,organised by the GN3 Task onInternational Cooperation (NA4 Task 1),JANET (the UK NREN), Internet2 andNYSERnet (the New York StateResearch and Education Network) washeld for interested NRENs and otherorganisations to discuss platforms

GLOBAL COMMUNITY IS ESTABLISHED TO PROMOTE SCHOOL COLLABORATIONS

which could be used by schools to helpthem identify suitable partners acrossthe world. With participants fromBulgaria, the United Kingdom, Spain,the United States, Canada, Guatemala,El Salvador and Rwanda as well as theUbuntuNet Alliance, the groupdiscussed a variety of on-line platformswhich can meet the group’s objectivesand considered ways for thoseplatforms to be promoted to schoolsand teachers around the world.

A final conclusion will be reachedthrough further discussion in the comingweeks, which the group hopes willinclude more NRENs from around theworld where schools benefit fromresearch and education connectivity.An additional decision of the meetingwas to set up a global interest group tocontinue discussion in the future on howto promote and assist schools inincreasing global collaboration.

For further information or to participate in the group, [email protected]

As part of a ceremonial handover ofmanagement responsibility for the TEINnetwork from DANTE to TEIN*CC, thetwo organisations signed an MoU(Memorandum of Understanding) at therecently held APAN Meeting inColombo, Sri Lanka to collaborate onprojects to benefit the research andeducation communities across Asia-Pacific and Europe.

They plan to capitalise on TEIN4activities and promote the long-termsustainability of research and educationnetworking in areas of mutual interest inthe Asia-Pacific region. As part of theceremonial handover fromTEIN3/DANTE to TEIN4/TEIN*CC, DavidWest, DANTE's TEIN3 project manager,was awarded a plaque from the TEINcommunity in recognition for his effortsto make TEIN a regional success story.

DANTE AND TEIN*CC SET TO COLLABORATE TO CONTINUE THE TEIN SUCCESS STORY

GLOBAL REACH

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GLOBAL REACH

The high-speed networks of GÉANTand CAREN (Central Asia Research andEducation Network) enable closecollaboration between European andTurkmen institutions, helping to developa vibrant solar power industry inTurkmenistan through e-training of localengineers and enabling real-timetransmission of solar performancemonitoring data.

COLLABORATION TOTRANSFER SOLARTECHNOLOGY SKILLSGiven its climate, with an average of 7.4hours of sunshine per day, thegovernment of Turkmenistan has madesolar power its strategic focus. Todevelop the engineering skills andtechnology needed to harness thepower of the sun, Turkmenistan isworking closely with European expertsto deliver distance learning, skillstransfer and solar cell performancemonitoring.

All of this information and dataexchange relies on the speed, capacityand reliability of the Central AsianCAREN and pan-European GÉANTresearch networks, enabling seamlessintercontinental collaboration.

CAREN HELPS HARNESS TURKMENISTAN’S SUNSHINE

To view the full case study visit:http://caren.dante.net

The power of ORIENTplus has beenharnessed as an essential element inenabling a cutting-edge internationalscientific collaboration betweenscientists in a remote Tibetan locationand in Italy, aimed at providing insightsinto the mysteries of the universe.

Gamma –ray showers are violentlyenergetic eruptions of high-frequencyelectromagnetic radiation, causedpredominately by the explosion ofmassive stars in distant galaxies billionsof light-years away. They may have arole in cloud formation and climatechange, radiation exposure on long-distance high-altitude flights and canpotentially affect the sensitiveelectronics on-board the large number of satellites circling our planet – responsible for importantcommunications and geo-monitoring.

ORIENTPLUS ENABLES ITALIAN AND CHINESEASTROPHYSICISTS TO STUDY ONE OF THEMOST PUZZLING PHENOMENA KNOWN TO SCIENCE: COSMIC SHOWERS

As with all research in astrophysics,studying gamma-ray showers producesterabytes of data every year. Onlyresearch networks can provide theextremely stable, high-capacityconnections necessary for the reliabletransfer of these large volumes of datain real time from where the data iscollected, to where it is analysed. Inresponse to growing capacity demandsfrom end users such as astrophysicists,the ORIENTplus link is to be upgradedto 10 Gbps, providing an additionalboost to collaborative research andeducation.

To view the full case study visit:www.orientplus.eu

STATUS OF C@RIBNET

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EARLIER THIS YEAR THECARIBBEAN KNOWLEDGEAND LEARNING NETWORK(CKLN) COMPLETED THEFIRST PHASE OF ITSPROJECT TO IMPLEMENTAND OPERATE THECARIBBEAN RESEARCHAND EDUCATIONNETWORK, [email protected] KEN SYLVESTER,CEO OF CKLN TALKSABOUT THE REGIONʼSFIRST DEDICATEDRESEARCH ANDEDUCATION NETWORK.

We are grateful to the European Unionand all those who helped makeC@ribNET a reality. Now that it’s herethe possibilities are endless and we areworking hard to inform key stakeholdersabout the benefits of having access tosuch a network.

Many of these benefits are in teachingand learning - with more opportunitiesfor Caribbean citizens to access tertiaryeducation at significantly reduced costs

and taking advantage of new anddiverse programmes and educationalopportunities. There are also greaterprospects for tertiary institutions toexpand joint degree programs, todevelop more collaborative, jointdistance programmes, such as the EarlyChildhood Education Diplomaprogramme now in production betweenShortwood Teacher’s College ofJamaica and the T.A. MarryshowCommunity College of Grenada.

Research in the Caribbean also standsto greatly benefit - by providing remoteaccess to resources not readilyavailable in the region (e.g. specializedinstruments, super computers, etc.)there is the potential to greatly enableand enhance the research initiatives ofCaribbean research and knowledgecentres, such as the TropicalMetabolism Research Institute (TMRI),the Caribbean Disaster EmergencyResponse Agency (CDERA) or theCaribbean Institute for Meteorology andHydrology (CIMH) and many others.

It's important to say that this networkbelongs to the governments and peopleof the region, to the teaching andlearning institutions, to researchdepartments and institutions, libraries,healthcare, cultural, sporting,

agricultural, disaster management andmany other entities that contribute to thepublic good. C@ribNET represents astrategic response to the globalimperatives CARICOM member stateshave endorsed, such as the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (2015) and theWorld Summit on the InformationSociety (WSIS), which we are allfeverishly working to advance.

I want to stress that C@ribNET is for thepublic good which means that no onecan be excluded from consuming it, justas we are entitled to national defence,sewer systems, public parks, roads etc.Notwithstanding our respective views onhow these are delivered, they are rightsthat the people of the Caribbean andworldwide, have come to expect.Therefore, the transfer and sharing ofknowledge is also an entitlement, andC@ribNET is a vehicle that can beutilized to share knowledge, betweenand among our people in the region,and with people in the rest of the world.

For the full article, visit www.ckln.org

GLOBAL REACH

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GÉANT AND EMSA - PROTECTING EUROPE’SSEAS FROM POLLUTIONCleanSeaNet uses GÉANT and its NREN partners to transmit satellite data in real-time to detect and monitor maritime oil spills

“Speed is of the essencewhen it comes to reducing theeffects of oil spills in Europeanwaters which is whyCleanSeaNet has been cre-ated, enabling EMSA to pro-vide fast warnings of potentialpollution to coastal states.Given the need to transmithuge files in extremely tighttimeframes CleanSeaNetuses the high speed and highbandwidth provided byGÉANT and Europeʼs nationalresearch networks. They support our CleanSeaNetservice, helping to protect European seas from pollution.”

Olaf Trieschmann, Senior Project Officer,CleanSeaNet

For the full case study, please visitwww.geant.net

Cutting marine pollution, suchas oil spills, is central tosafeguarding theenvironment. However thesheer size of European seas,stretching south from theArctic to the Canary Islands inthe Atlantic and east to theBlack Sea combined with thenumber of vessels travellingthrough them makesdetecting and collectingevidence on polluters similarto finding a needle in ahaystack.

To help meet this need for faster andmore detailed monitoring the EuropeanMaritime Safety Agency (EMSA)developed the CleanSeaNet service.This combines satellite data withpowerful Geographic InformationSystems (GIS) to provide a real-timeservice for monitoring oil pollution andcollecting evidence of potentialpolluting vessels. These results canthen be used by authorities in therelevant country to take action to cleanup spills and prosecute offenders.CleanSeaNet was created through anEU directive as part of on-going effortsto decrease maritime pollution.

Oil spills change rapidly depending onwind and tidal conditions, so it is vitalthat satellite data is transmitted asquickly as possible. CleanSeaNet aimsto provide alerts to relevant memberstates within 30 minutes, enabling themto react quickly and to reduce theenvironmental impact.

Given the enormous range of satelliteimages, which cover up to 250,000 km2and can reach sizes of over 1 Gb, it isdifficult to send these files economicallythrough commercial networks in nearreal-time. CleanSeaNet relies uponGÉANT and National Research andEducation Networks (NRENs) to deliverthis vital data within strict time limits.

Since CleanSeaNet went live in2007 the number of oil spillsdetected on the images taken inEuropean waters has decreased byhalf. While this is due to a range offactors including better ship designand greater environmentalawareness, CleanSeaNet hasproved to be a strong deterrent toolin safeguarding the Europeanmaritime environment.

USER FOCUS

25

CREATING A GLOBAL PLATFORM TO COMBATALZHEIMER’SoutGRID and GÉANT are enabling scientists and doctors across the globe toshare vital neuroscience data, helping accelerate research into Alzheimer’s.

“Neurodegenerative diseases are one of the biggest challenges for globalhuman health, predicted to affect over115 million people by 2050. With noknown cure, concerted researchcollaboration is absolutely vital if we areto better understand conditions such asAlzheimer’s and begin to create drugsto combat them. Research networkssuch as GÉANT are at the heart of thiscollaboration – without their combinationof robust, high speed connectivity andglobal reach we simply couldn’texchange the enormous amounts ofinformation that these initiatives arecollecting.”

Dr Giovanni Frisoni, outGRID

With a new case of dementiaevery 24 seconds in Europe,Alzheimer’s disease is themost common form ofneurodegenerative dementia.Yet with no current cure,scientists and doctors aroundthe world are working closelytogether to research thesedamaging neurodegenerativebrain conditions, both to helpfaster diagnosis and topinpoint causes and potentialtreatments.

The outGRID project used highbandwidth research networks todemonstrate the feasibility ofconnecting global neuroscienceinfrastructures from Europe and NorthAmerica, laying the foundations forfuture interoperability. Together withGÉANT and its partners, the project islaying the foundations for dramaticchanges in global scientificcollaboration in neurodegenerativediseases, promising to accelerateresearch and treatment methods forAlzheimer’s and potentially easingsuffering for millions of people acrossthe globe.

For the full case study, visitwww.geant.net

USER FOCUS

26

NEW STRATEGY AND POLICY PAPERS FOR E-IRGBy Ari Turunen, Communications Manager, Cloud Software Program

Research and innovation arestrategic elements for Europeancompetitiveness in the world.The European e-Infrastructuresare developing into aninterrelated ecosystem ofnetworking and high-throughput/high-performancecomputing components thatinteract with virtual researchcommunities worldwide. Otherimportant constituents of the e-Infrastructure ecosystem, suchas infrastructures for data andsoftware-related services, arerapidly emerging in projects andinformal internationalcollaborations.

e-IRG’S NEW STRATEGY:INSPIRING FUTURE e-INFRASTRUCTURES INEUROPE AND BEYONDThe continuing internationalisation of the usercommunity requires clarification of the rolesof local, national, European and globalinitiatives, especially at the organisational,political and financial levels.

e-IRG has to continuously re-engineer its roleif it is to carry on providing high quality, well-founded input with an unique added-valuefor the further development of the e-Infrastructure that can best serve Europeanresearch purposes. e-IRG will adapt itsstrategic objectives along two main lines:Establish e-IRG as the main advisory bodyon e-Infrastructures internationally anddevelop e-IRG as the coordination platformfor all components of European e-Infrastructures

ESTABLISH e-IRG AS THE MAIN ADVISORY BODY ON e-INFRASTRUCTURESINTERNATIONALLYWhen preparing its views, e-IRG will giveample room to discussion on differentoptions or scenarios, and give a voice to thechallenging visions of external experts.

e-IRG can act as an external and neutraladvisor and expert by producing reports andanalysis as well as pinpointing the strengths,weaknesses, opportunities and threats of anygiven project or initiative, and by givingsolutions and revealing possible synergies ofcooperation with other projects and/orinitiatives.

A strengthened advisory role within e-Infrastructures requires fully embracing thechallenges of data-intensive science (d-Science) and infrastructures for dataservices. The data challenges have aconsiderable impact on the other e-Infrastructure components. Therefore e-IRGmust also be able to provide advice on theconsequences of these data challenges forthose components, such as on management,sustainability, legal issues, access, security,interoperability, etc.

Embracing the data area will also strengthenthe links between e-Infrastructures and thedata-generating research facilities andinfrastructures, again underlining the specialties to ESFRI and its roadmap projects. Ofequal importance is the engagement of e-IRG with end users of the data-producingresearch infrastructures. They may requireadvanced e-Infrastructure services but notyet have any organisations that can take careof their common interest.

DEVELOP e-IRG AS THECOORDINATION PLATFORMFOR ALL COMPONENTS OF EUROPEAN e-INFRASTRUCTURESe-IRG should strongly facilitate theinternational coordination of e-Infrastructureactivities and the presentation of all differentcomponents to users as integrated e-Infrastructure services. This is vital forusers. Facilitating the coordination of e-Infrastructure components should definitelyinclude the data infrastructures, in view oftheir growing importance for enabling e-Science. e-IRG should also stimulate thedevelopment of policies, structures andservices to facilitate the creation of valuefrom data (d-Science).

The strategy document includes an actionplan to realise the strategic goals.

BLUE PAPER ON DATAMANAGEMENT 2012ESFRI invited e-IRG to produce this report toenable more efficient e-Infrastructure supportfor the science that is done by the ESFRIprojects.

In the emerging era of Open Science,research infrastructures play a fundamentalrole as major data production factories. e-Infrastructures provide the tools for creatingthe added value from data, as well as thetechnologies for implementing appropriatesecurity and data protection policies. e-IRGhas published a Blue Paper on DataManagement. It describes some basic datamanagement principles for researchinfrastructures and focuses on cross-cuttingthemes for all research infrastructures relatedto data management. It provides anassessment of Europe’s e-Infrastructureservice portfolio, and identifies theopportunities and challenges involved.

GÉANT is a vital part of the European research e-infrastructure, which includes high performance networking, distributed computing infrastructures,supercomputing and data storage. Here we welcome our many partners to shed light on their activities.

COMMUNITY NEWS

The Blue Paper reports on current trends andissues and sets out policy recommendationsfor several key areas, especially for ESFRIprojects.

The Blue Paper identifies the most importantareas of data management addressing thefollowing topics:

• Data e-Infrastructure • Reliability and Replications • Metadata • Unified Access and interoperability • Security

e-IRG POLICY PAPER ONSCIENTIFIC SOFTWAREWith the successful establishment of aEuropean e-Infrastructure ecosystem, how tomaintain and improve the scientific softwarebase has become an urgent issue. Manyapplications depend on legacy software thatis difficult to maintain and difficult to runefficiently on current and future e-Infrastructures. There is a clear need for acoherent process and major efforts targetedtowards enhancing the European softwarebase for efficient use of European e-Infrastructures to increase the scientificoutput while ensuring the best value formoney.

In view of the upcoming Horizon2020program there is a clear need to develop aconsistent framework and related policies forestablishing a European Software Strategytaking a holistic view of the national,European, and international ecosystem.

This e-IRG Policy Paper aims to laying theground for a European software strategy. Thefocus is on "scientific software", that issoftware that is primarily used in researchand development, both within academic and industrial environments.

The report proposes as its mainrecommendation that to address the softwarecrisis, the EC and the member states shouldprovide support and funding for theestablishment of Centres of Excellence forScientific Software (CESS), currently focusingon scientific software on the application layerusing a holistic approach and building upand retaining the necessary competence offuture European software developers.The strategy and policy papers are available at www.e-irg.eu.

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THEY ARE THE EGI CHAMPIONSBy Neasan O’Neill, NGI Communications Coordinator

The European GridInfrastructure (EGI) hasannounced a new initiativeto help researchers get upto speed with the grid andstart using it. Officiallyannounced at the EGITechnical Forum in Praguethe scheme will establish anetwork of pioneeringresearchers, called EGIChampions, promoting theuse of grid in their field.

In the last decade the European gridhas seen an amazing increase incapability and users. Manyresearchers have benefited, withareas as diverse as High EnergyPhysics and Humanities beingsupported by EGI to do cutting edgework. For EGI this is not enough andthey want many more scientists tomake use of their services. This iswhere the Champions come in.

One of the main benefits of a 10-year-old infrastructure is the expertise andexperience that has been built upalongside the technical tools andsolutions. Through the Champions,EGI hopes to be able to offer not onlymiddleware but also this peopleware.“The community is king in EGI, that’swhy we are here; to providecomputing resources for our growingcommunity” explains Steve Brewer,EGI’s Chief Community Officer “theChampions will enable us to furtherexpand our userbase and we’re nowlooking for the right people for us tosupport to do that.”

But what is a Champion and what isexpected of them? Firstly, andimportantly, they need to beenthusiastic users of EGI computingresources, and secondly, willing to goout and talk to others in their disciplineabout grid. “We want people to getout there and tell their peers about us.We can’t go to every conference ormeeting but the Champions can” saysSteve “We will provide support withaccess to technical briefings, thelatest news and cover travel costs forrelevant meetings.”

EGI hopes that the Championsscheme will grow into a pan-Europeannetwork with researchers from allcorners of the academic world helpingEGI and their community. If you areinterested in learning more, visit thescheme’s webpage or watch a video from the e-ScienceTalk team of Steve talking about the EGI Champions.

COMMUNITY NEWS

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NORDIC NRENS TOWARDSTHE FUTUREBy Mattis Daae, UNINETT

The NORDUnet conference is the biannual meeting place for the “Networkers of the North” whereinterested parties in the Nordic countries come together to discuss the current and future challengesthat the Nordic NRENs are facing. Over the years the Nordic focus has been seasoned with globalnews and views which was also true for this 27th NORDUnet conference in Oslo, Norway.

CHANGES INEDUCATION Several of the speakers at theconference focused on the changes we are seeing in education. Researchand education is shifting out of theclassroom and onto the net. An estimatepredicts that in 2020, 80 per cent ormore of the lectures will take place via the net.

This also gives the NRENs newchallenges. For one the increase incapacity can never stop if we are going to be able to cope with theincreased demand. Furthermore theNRENs also have to look at what otherroles it is important to play in the future. We should provide more thanjust connectivity. “Users are choosers” was one of the key principles of theconference. Identifying the user, and not least, identifying its needsbecomes more and more vital, in orderto be able to provide the right type and range of services.

AMERICANPERSPECTIVES One interesting aspect that wasdiscussed at the conference is thedifference in American and Europeanperspectives. In the US most of theinnovation focuses on the core networkand is trying to simplify theinfrastructure by (among other things)building a 10 gigabit network, based on SDN and open flow.

EDUROAM eduroam is one of the really bigEuropean success stories. So farEduroam has been limited touniversities and colleges, but theevidence points to a more widespreaduse. Sweden has so far made eduroamavailable at train stations, airports and hotels.

IDENTITYMANAGEMENTThere is no doubt that identitymanagement will be one of the main

areas for the NRENs in the future.Creating, using and maintainingmiddleware will be crucial. In this fieldwe also saw examples of new types ofcooperation between the public andcommercial interests.

NUMBERS The conference gathered 220participants from 23 countries. Inaddition more than 400 people from 27 countries followed the video stream.More than 80 people gavepresentations.

We registered 625 uniquecommunications devices on theconference SSID, roughly 3 gadgets perperson. 480 of these were connectedvia eduroam and 83 percent of theserequested IPv6.

The next conference will be held inSweden in 2014. We hope to see you there.

MORE INFORMATION http://www.nordu.net/conference

2012C O N F E R E N C ENORDUnetIN OSLO, NORWAY

SEPTEMBER18th-20th

THE NORDIC NETWORKING

MEETING PLACEMeet your networking community.

Universities, NREN’s, Nordic, Europeanand global colleagues all brought

together under one roof.

SHOWCASE Existing collaborations,

future developments, pipeline ideas, current challenges, recent

results – we cover the lot.

COMMUNITY NEWS

LATEST MATERIALS & CASE STUDIES

29

www.geant.net

www.twitter.com/GEANTnews

www.facebook.com/GEANTnetwork

www.youtube.com/GEANTtv

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ACOnetwww.aco.net

Belnetwww.belnet.be

BRENwww.bren.bg

CARNetwww.carnet.hr

CyNETwww.cynet.ac.cy

CESNETwww.ces.net

EENetwww.eenet.ee

RENATERwww.renater.fr

DFNwww.dfn.de

GRNETwww.grnet.gr

NIIFwww.niif.hu

HEAnetwww.heanet.ie

UPCOMING EVENTSCARNet Users Conference 201212 – 14 November, Croatia

Super Computing 201210 – 15 November, Salt Lake City

HEAnet National Conference 20127 – 9 November, Co Westmeath

GÉANT is the pan-European research and educationnetwork that interconnects Europe’s National Researchand Education Networks (NRENs). Together weconnect over 40 million researchers and studentsacross Europe, facilitating collaborative research in adiverse range of disciplines, including high-energyphysics, radio astronomy, bio-medicine, climatechange, earth observation and arts & culture.

GÉANT PartnersIUCCwww.iucc.ac.il

GARRwww.garr.net

SigmaNetwww.sigmanet.lv

LITNETwww.litnet.lt

RESTENAwww.restena.lu

MARNetdns.marnet.net.mk

University of Maltawww.um.edu.mt

MRENwww.mren.ac.me

SURFnetwww.surfnet.nl

NORDUnetwww.nordu.net

PSNCwww.man.poznan.pl

FCCNwww.fccn.pt

AARNIEC/RoEduNetwww.nren.ro

AMRESwww.amres.ac.rs

SANETwww.sanet.sk

ARNESwww.arnes.si

RedIRISwww.rediris.es

SWITCHwww.switch.ch

ULAKBIMwww.ulakbim.gov.tr

JANETwww.ja.net

DANTEwww.dante.net

TERENAwww.terena.org

BASNET www.bas-net.by

JSCCwww.jscc.ru

Associate NRENsRENAMwww.renam.md

URANwww.uran.net.ua

ABOUT GÉANT

Brochures introducing ournetwork, services and users. Visit www.geant.net.

EMSA OutGRID

www.geant.net

This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of DANTE and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union. CONNECT/1012

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CONNECT Magazine Issue 9