Revitalizing the National Ecological Network Cyberinfrastructure; June 13-14, 2016; Boulder, CO and September, 2016; Boulder, CO

Brandeis University, Waltham MA

Investigators

Abstract

The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) will be a shared-use, continental scale research platform for ecological research. The network will consist of geographically distributed infrastructure deployed across the continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. The concept, design, and selection of sites and instruments for the various NEON sites and activities have evolved over many years, during which community consultation has been an important activity. The recent change in NEON management provides an opportunity for evaluating aspects of the Observatory's infrastructure as it relates to the achievement of the Observatory's goals. Through consultation with NEON's new management, this project will plan and implement two workshops to identifying immediate improvements in the current cyberinfrastructure (CI) architecture, and provide a foundation for framing community involvement in designing a cutting-edge, evolvable framework for the NEON CI. With the selection of Battelle to assume management responsibilities of NEON, NSF views this as a prime opportunity to evaluate the CI needs of the NEON project and align them to support the data products and other IT requirements of the project. A major goal is to update the framework of NEON's CI and put in place an architecture that is evolvable. Plans are to engage Battelle and the expertise it brings to the project in the evaluation of the CI requirements of the project. Participants in the workshop will engage in open discussion of issues and opportunities, identify constructive approaches towards enhancing NEON's CI, and provide suggestions about how to best maintain a CI framework that can be optimized to meet the community's needs over the life of the project. Outcomes of the workshop include several deliverables that will inform management and the community of stakeholders as the project moves into this new phase.