| Increasingly, the conduct of science requires strong international scientific partnerships and the sharing of data, information, knowledge and other assets. This is particularly true in the geosciences where the highly coupled nature of the Earth system and the need to understand global environmental processes and their regional linkages have heightened the importance of international collaborations. As geoscience studies become a team effort involving networked scientists and data providers, it is crucial that there is full, open, reliable and timely access to and sharing of earth system science data.
Unidata, which is funded by the United States National Science Foundation, recognizes the benefits of international scientific partnerships and the value of networked communities, as institutions and people exchange data, knowledge and other resources. Unidata’s international data sharing activities began modestly as the MeteoForum project in Latin America in 2001, but have since grown to include several projects and collaborations in many countries. Unidata’s growing portfolio of international activities are conducted in close collaboration with academic, research, and operational institutions worldwide. Specific emphasis of those efforts is on sharing data, and provision of software, support, and training. Real-time atmospheric science data delivered have helped to initiate teaching innovations in universities, advanced research, and facilitated operational forecasting.
In this talk, an overview of Unidata’s approach to gradual but organic international broadening will be presented, along with examples of specific collaborations and activities via myriad internationally-linked efforts and projects. In addition to describing these efforts, the talk will summarize some of the lessons learned in developing, implementing, and supporting those activities. |