As one of the infrastructures included on the ESFRI Roadmap 2016, the European Solar Telescope attended the ESFRI Workshop on the Future of Research Infrastructures in the European Research Area.
Rafael Rebolo, IAC director (first from the left), emphasized the need for EST to become a reality. / Credits: Iván Jiménez (IAC)
From 6 to 8 November, La Palma (Spain) hosted a wokshop on the Future of Research Infrastructures in the European Research Area. Organised by ESFRI, the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures, the meeting gathered more than 100 representatives of major European science infrastructures, including the European Solar Telescope - which was included on the ESFRI Roadmap in 2016.
Intended as a comprehensive reflection process on the current challenges and future role of existing and future European research infrastructures, the meeting was co-organised by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, the EST consortium coordinator. During his welcome speech, Rafael Rebolo, IAC Director, emphasized the need for the European Solar Telescope to become a reality and to function as a global infrastructure, open not only to European researchers but also to Asian scientists. Extending cooperation outside European borders was also emphasized by Adam Tyson, Head of the Unit for Research and Industrial Infrastructures of the European Commission. Tyson added that research infrastructures "need a strategic vision that goes beyond the area in which they work, generating connections and providing services that help researchers face today's major problems such as climate change or digital transition".
Topics covered during the workshop included the integration of infrastructures in the European Open Science Cloud, financing models, good practices, synergies with other national programmes and infrastructures, and the role of European research infrastructures in enhancing the innovation and competitiveness of the European Research Area. The discussions and reflections will be used to write a prospective white paper on the future of research infrastructures in Europe.
ESFRI, the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures, is a strategic instrument to develop European scientific integration and to strengthen its international outreach. Its mission is to support a coherent and strategy-led approach to policy-making on research infrastructures in Europe, and to facilitate multilateral initiatives leading to their better use and development, at EU and international level. It was established in 2002 with a mandate from the EU Council.
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Recordings of the workshop can be found at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGyM5vVpaq9G8DPvPLa4Cvw