Connecting Communities: identifying synergies between international integration initiatives

An increasing number of data and cyberinfrastructure communities of practice vie for Earth science practitioners’ attention and time. ESIP, EarthCube, RDA, ICSU-WDS, DataOne, USGEO, GEO, COOPEUS, CODATA and USGS CDI are a non-exhaustive list. These communities have similar goals and host parallel working groups that support the mission of advancing scientific research through data interoperability. There is great diversity in the maturity of these organizations and it is clear that there is much to be learned from and with each other. Volunteer fatigue has become a serious obstacle to advancing the important efforts of these organizations, and we recognize that better communication and collaboration across organizations can help alleviate this problem.

This session will focus on actively identifying synergistic activities and will create a plan for dissemination and maintenance of this dialog. We build on the foundation of previous meetings and projects such as EarthCube’s Mapping the Landscape tool. Our goals are to expose active groups with exemplary achievements, connect organizations to leverage each other’s expertise and knowledge base, and determine gaps to be filled. Join us for a working session to identify and connect opportunities between different communities of practice.