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Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia and Costa Rica sign an e-Science commitment for Latin America
Aiming to put advanced computing resources at reach for researchers and academics, last june the first regional agreement to follow up the functioning of the e-Infrastructure based on grid technology in Latin America was signed.
Grid Technology will keep growing in the region thanks to a regional agreement signed to keep this e-Infrastructure running. This effort is focused on benefiting strategic sectors as such as health and enviroment. Moreover, the agreement is greatly focused on getting financial resources and managerial mechanisms to consolidate on sustainable way the region's e-Infrastructure, and stimulate its use in the latin american academic comunitties. The agreement is the result of the GISELA-CHAIN conference held in Mexico in late june. The representatives of the National Research and Education Networks of Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador, CEDIA, RENATA and CUDI, respectively, signed the agreement in june 29. A few days later, during the TICAL 2012 conference held in Lima, Peru (July 2 and 3), Costa Rica joined the agreement through RedCONARE.
GISELA is the last stage of a project that was financed by the European Community to set and develop an e-Infrasctructure based on grid technology, which allows the use of scientific and investigative resources. This agreement makes real a politic will to guarantee the sustainability of this particular initiative.
Mexico, Ecuador and Colombia have had a great e-Infrastructure development. Mexico, has been specially outstanding in Latin America. CUDI's representative, Salma Jalife, recognized GISELA-CHAIN conference's as a highly important activity and world wide respected among other projects of its class. A matter to highlight is that the discussion has put at reach the sustainability concept of this sort of services, where research and scientific networks are vital.
According to Villie Morocho, CEDIA's Executive Director, Ecuador has given a step forwar to claim a more starring role at a continental level. Morocho underlined the human resource's importance and the strengthenth of their platform after six years of operation. CEDIA lifted a 100 cores platform which is available to ecuadorian researchers. The effort on bringing more people to the network never stops, he said.
Costa Rica joined the Declaración de Sostenibilidad de la e-Infraestructura de Grid y Cómputo Avanzado para la e-ciencia de América Latina (Declaration of Sustainability of the Grid e-Infrastructure and Advanced Computing for e-Science in Latin America) during the Scond Conference of ICT Directors of Higher Education Institutions (TICAL 2012) held in Lima on early July.
This new venturing was signed by Alvaro de la Ossa, representing Costa Rica's RedCONARE (Red de Investigación y Educación del Consejo Nacional de Rectores para la e-Ciencia y la e-Educación – Research and Education Network of the Nacional Council of Rectors for e-Science and e-Education).
It is envisioned that new countries will join this important declaration, where the goal is to keep advanced computing services sustainable.
See de declaration here: http://www.gisela-grid.eu/images/stories/GISELA_Images/declaracionMx.jpg
More about GISELA: http://www.gisela-grid.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33&Itemid=39
