The Blue-Cloud (B-C) Project has recently concluded its first year of operations, and with it the first round of stakeholder consultations towards building the B-C Roadmap to 2030 – the vision and strategic plan that will guide the further development and evolution into the medium and longer-term future. Led by Seascape Belgium, Trust-IT and MARIS, this first phase of stakeholder dialogue has specifically been geared at establishing initial conversations with closer members of the Blue-Cloud Community, including Project Partners, the B-C External Stakeholder & Expert Board (ESEB), representatives of the European Commission and key stakeholder communities (marine researchers, marine data infrastructures, research infrastructures and e-infrastructures). Starting with a workshop gathering the B-C ESEB in July, an online survey to the wider community in October and a Policy Dialogue in November, this first phase wrapped up in December by bringing the B-C ESEB again together to reflect on the preliminary results of these conversations and guide the next steps forward.
Some key messages and findings have already stemmed from these initial consultations. In January 2021, the Blue-Cloud project Partners will come together to reflect on these results and to continue sharing visions and expertise towards co-designing a medium and long-term vision for the future development of the Blue-Cloud into the future, building a Blue-Cloud capability that is open and inclusive and establishing priorities to contribute to the EU Green Deal and other relevant international frameworks, such as the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.
Building on a detailed Concept Note and this first phase of stakeholder consultation, the early results of this process will see the light with the first draft B-C Roadmap to 2030, which is planned for release in early Spring 2021 for wider stakeholder consultation throughout the summer. So stay tuned for more exciting developments as we welcome and venture into the New Year!
