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NEWARK, NJ, April 10, 2024

Dr. Forough Ghahramani, Assistant Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Sponsored Programs, Edge, and Ecosystem for Research Networking (ERN) Steering Committee member, is joining an esteemed group of scientific and cyberinfrastructure researchers at the Ecosystem for Research Networking (ERN) Summit 2024. 

The Ecosystem for Research Networking Summit provides the scientific and cyberinfrastructure research community an opportunity to come together and discuss ERN mission and accomplishments, hear from domain researchers and CI professionals at smaller institutions about the the successes and challenges related to leveraging local, regional, and national resources for projects, and learn about funding resources and partnership opportunities, as well as regional and national communities.

This year’s summit will be held April 11-12, 2024 at the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center in Pittsburgh, PA. There will be open discussions and conversations on focus areas and policies as they pertain to areas of community interest including AI, quantum, Big Data, cybersecurity and protecting data, research instruments, workforce development, applications for ERN, education and training.

“As the co-chair of the ERN Broadening the Reach working group, gaining a better understanding of the advanced computing and resource requirements and how the ERN can support the needs of the smaller institutions, historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), and Minority Serving institutions is an important aspect of our mission. I am excited to learn from the community how the ERN can expand outreach and increase collaboration opportunities for broadening the reach and impact in support of the research community in the smaller-less resourced institutions.”

— Dr. Forough Ghahramani
Assistant Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Sponsored Programs, Edge

Featuring a keynote speech titled Re-imagining American Innovation: Bridging the Gap to Unlock America’s Stranded Brilliance presented by Dr. James Martin, NSF Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering Committee member, and Vice Chancellor for STEM Research and Innovation at the University of Pittsburgh, the two-day summit will also include domain researchers and CI professionals at smaller institutions about the successes and challenges related to leveraging  local, regional, and national resources for projects, and learn about funding resources and partnership opportunities, as well as regional and national communities. In addition to representation from small schools, HBCU’s, and MSI’s, we are grateful to National Science Foundation ( NSF) colleagues who will also be in attendance, providing opportunities for interaction between attendees and the NSF program directors. The full Summit agenda is available HERE.

Elaborates Dr. Barr von Oehsen, Director of the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center, “Scientific discoveries have always been driven by advances in instruments of observation. Today, experimental tools are more advanced and more costly to construct and maintain, and the interpretation and simulation of data is more dependent on the use of cutting-edge computing resources, services, and knowledge. Consequently, many academic institutions lack access to these facilities. Our aim is to democratize access to research instruments, and the ERN Summit provides a platform for devising strategies to achieve this objective.”

For Summit details please visit the ERN Summit Events website. Any questions, please contact us via email at info@ern.ci.


About Edge

Edge serves as a member-owned, nonprofit provider of high performance optical fiber networking and internetworking, Internet2, and a vast array of best-in-class technology solutions for cybersecurity, educational technologies, cloud computing, and professional managed services. Edge provides these solutions to colleges and universities, K-12 school districts, government entities, hospital networks and nonprofit business entities as part of a membership-based consortium. Edge’s membership spans the northeast, along with a growing list of EdgeMarket participants nationwide. Edge’s common good mission ensures success by empowering members for digital transformation with affordable, reliable and thought-leading purpose-built, advanced connectivity, technologies and services.