The exchange of ideas and expertise with our community is crucial for an organisation like Belnet. Through its active involvement in the GN5 project, Belnet seeks to contribute to the further development of the e-infrastructure for European research and educational institutions.
GN5 is the name of the partnership agreement that the pan-European research network GÉANT and the EU signed last year. In the meantime, the exact form of the project has taken set out and the project partners have also been appointed. Belnet is proud to have its candidacy accepted across the board. It means our colleagues will play a prominent role in the first phase of this ambitious project ("GN5-1") for a period of at least two years (2023-2024), subject to the final approval of the GN5-1 proposal by the European Commission.
Dirk Haex, Technical Director at Belnet says: "Collaboration is in the DNA of research and education networks (NRENs) like Belnet. Our involvement in the GN5 project allows us to share our own experiences as well as building new knowledge. It's a win-win that also benefits our community."
Contribution to various work packages
Like the current GN4-3 project, GN5 is structured into several work packages, each of which encompasses a specific domain of activity. Belnet will be represented in several of these working groups, namely Security, Network Development and Trust & Identity.
With regard to security, we will share best practices to create a set of policies and governance procedures that can be used by the NREN community. In addition, we will contribute to initiatives that focus on the human factor of cyber security to increase knowledge and awareness in relation to security in the R&E community, including through the organisation of an annual campaign during the European Cyber Security Month.
Network Development is another key work package in which Belnet is closely involved. More specifically, we will be working with our colleagues in the other NRENs to further develop the orchestration and automation of network services.
Finally, within Trust & Identity, Belnet will use its expertise to further improve eduroam (one of the best-known services in GÉANT's portfolio) and all the tools linked to it.
Do you have ideas or suggestions on any of the above topics? Please do not hesitate to get in touch so we can share them within the working groups.