The ENVRI Community fosters collaboration and joint development among environmental research infrastructures across Europe. It’s not a project or legal entity, but rather a dynamic forum where research infrastructures of all stages of development can connect, share best practices, and drive innovation. The community is supported by the Board of European Environmental Research Infrastructures (BEERI), its governing body.
Collaboration Mechanisms
The field of environmental sciences is large. It covers highly diverse research domains and is related to a complex fabric of environmental challenges in societies. The ENVRI community reflects this complex landscape with many RIs being, by their nature, cross-, multi- or inter-disciplinary, and some being specialised in one domain. Some are dedicated to observations, while others perform experiments, and there are those RIs that are mainly data infrastructures. Some are established RIs that have already achieved a high internal organisation and a legal structure, while others are still projects and networks that are undergoing the process towards a mature RI.
BEERI
The ENVRI Cluster has established the
Board of European Environmental Research Infrastructures (BEERI) as its governing body to account for the complex landscape of environmental sciences. BEERI was established during the cluster project ENVRIplus and is currently maintained as part of ENVRI-FAIR. Today, BEERI is available as a body for
consultation and science-based input to policymaking in the fields named above. The ENVRI Community and its governing body BEERI, are currently exploring additional models of access that would enable scientists to use RIs as platforms for mission-related research. The body also discusses potential pathways towards sustainable collaboration among the participating RIs. The baseline of potential collaboration mechanisms discussed within BEERI is the sustainable continuation of independent research infrastructures, which have developed and will further develop and expose research services and tools in their respective scientific fields.
Memorandum of Understanding
The environmental Research Infrastructures organised in the ENVRI community prepare a Memorandum of Understanding to foster cooperation, joint activities, exchange of experience and mutual support in its framework and encourage cross-disciplinary research activities as well as the continuing operation of the ENVRI-Hub. Given the current level of organisation, a continuing funding scheme for further collaboration of the ENVRI cluster within Horizon Europe is an indispensable prerequisite for the sustainability of the ENVRI community cooperation, the further development of the ENVRI-hub and the consolidation and further development of cross-cluster interdisciplinary scientific activities.
