Building New Zealand Capability! Today’s Plan Introduction

KAREN

• Building New Zealand Capability!

Today’s Plan

• Introduction

• Collaboration – now and in the future

• Lunch

• Tools

• Capability Development

• Wrap up

What do we mean by capability?

• One definition:

• The appropriate combination of competent people, knowledge, money, technology, physical assets, systems and structures necessary to deliver a specified level of performance in pursuit of the organisation’s objectives, now and/or in the future.

KAREN Capability Development

• Advanced Network Capability Building Advisory Panel advises REANNZ on capability development issues

• Representatives from KAREN members and leaders from wider community (e.g. schools, libraries)

• Current CRI reps from AgResearch, NIWA

Capability Build Fund

• NZ$5M over 2006-2009

• Goals

• 1. Establish awareness
• 2. Enable effective use of KAREN
• 3. Promote the use of KAREN
• 4. Create a community ethos of sharing knowledge and resources

CBF Travel Support

• Participate in NZ and overseas activities, e.g. conferences, workshops, training courses, meetings

• Invite international experts to NZ to participate in local activities

• Inwards and outwards internships and exchanges

Examples of travel funded by CBF

• Argonne National Laboratory in the US hosted a VUW PhD student for 3 months to work on a grid computing project with world expert and NZ ex-pat Prof Ian Foster.

• University of Auckland invited Australian experts to consult on the development of the NZ-BioGrid portal.

• Canterbury researchers will train in simulation, reconstruction & analysis at an overseas neutrino telescope institute.

• Executive Officer of NZ Council for the Humanities attended eResearch Australasia 2007 conference and met with Australian Academy of the Humanities to discuss common issues and potential collaborations.

CBF Event Support

• Organise and host NZ events, subsidise attendance

• Examples

• HIT Lab NZ (Univ of Canterbury) ran two educational workshops on Next Generation Teleconferencing for current and new Access Grid users.
• High Performance Computing workshop held at Auckland University of Technology
• Wellington summer school on grid computing

CBF Project Support

• Goal: develop expertise and produce success stories.

• Research or education: should focus on capability building aspects.

• Not intended as a substitute for other competitive research funds.

• Not intended for capital purchases and normal operational costs.

Targeted CBF Projects

• Identity and Access Management

• Stocktake of current capability and systems
• Raise awareness of shared need

• Advanced Video Conferencing and Collaboration [draft]

• Establish policy and standards working group
• National operations centre

The Roadmap

• A national framework for activities needed to foster KAREN uptake and develop NZ e-research

• Can be adapted by individual organisations for local strategies

• A ‘conversation starter’ for policy and funding agencies, e.g. MoRST, FRST

• Released 13 August 2007: a ‘living document’

• http://www.karen.net.nz/roadmap-released/

Roadmap overview

Technological capability

• Roadmap identifies some key technologies that need to be deployed within 2-3 years.

• In some cases, tools are available but support services are needed to make best use of them – booking systems, technical support, training etc.

• In other cases, tools will be ‘adopted and adapted’: emphasis on technology transfer and not re-inventing the wheel.

Workforce development

• Having the basic fabric, structures and strategies in place for e-Research will not in itself guarantee a full return on those investments. To move forward, these initiatives must be accompanied by investments in people-oriented strategies that more effectively engage and support researchers in changing their practices and cultures.

• South Australian Department of
• Further Education, Employment, Science and Technology

Workforce development

• Coordinated programme of professional development activities, including

• A range of events at different centres and in the workplace: conferences, workshops, roadshows, online tutorials
• Visitor programme

• Support for postgraduates and new researchers

• Exemplar projects

• Real research needs; knowledge can be embedded in the workplace

What do researchers need to know?

• E-research basics

• Exposure to exemplar projects

• Training for new tools and resources

• Online communication and facilitation

• Data/information management

• As projects get bigger and more complex: project management, communication, team-building are also important

Skills development: other specialists

• IT specialists

• Identity and access management
• Grid services management
• Building e-research applications (e.g. web services)

• Technicians

• Installing and configuring new applications
• Audiovisual production techniques

• Other support specialists

The wider sector: what is required?

• Increased awareness of KAREN and e-research amongst policy makers and funding agencies

• Governance structures that provide leadership and coordination

• Better relationships between KAREN members – and also with industry, schools and the cultural sector

More information

• Advanced Network Capability Building Advisory Panel Role and List of Members

• http://karen.net.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Advisory-Panel-Role.pdf

• Capability Build Fund Criteria and Goals

• http://karen.net.nz/assets/Uploads/pdfcriteriaandgoals.PDF

• Advanced Network Capability Building Roadmap 2007-2009

• http://www.karen.net.nz/roadmap-released/