EOSC Beyond: Advancing innovation and collaboration for research
Updated 22/04/2026
EGI-coordinated projects featured in ERCIM News issue on Open Science
The April 2026 special theme issue of ERCIM News (Issue 144) focuses on the evolving landscape of European research infrastructures. The EGI Foundation and its partners in coordinated projects have contributed four articles highlighting innovations in federation testing, data scalability, and domain-specific science gateways.
Below is a summary of the featured articles authored by the EGI team:
The EOSC Core Innovation Sandbox: A Launchpad for Europe’s Open Science Federation
- Authors: Federico Drago (Communications Specialist & Digital Communications Manager, EGI Foundation) and Nicola Fiore (Software Architect, EGI Foundation)
- Overview: Becoming part of the EOSC Federation is a significant step for any organisation involved in research. The new EOSC Core Innovation Sandbox provides a safe, pre-production environment where providers can test their integration, validate interoperability, and gain confidence before joining the live federation, turning the complexity of Open Science into a manageable, step-by-step process.
- Read the full article
Scalable Platforms for Reusing Research Infrastructure Data in Open Science
- Authors: Magdalena Brus (Communications Lead, EGI Foundation), Ville Tenhunen (Data Solutions Architect, EGI Foundation), and Gergely Sipos (Head of Services, Solutions and Support, EGI Foundation) on behalf of the RI-SCALE consortium
- Overview: European Research Infrastructures generate vast amounts of valuable scientific data, yet reusing these data remains difficult in practice due to the growing gap between data availability and data usability. As datasets reach terabyte and petabyte scale, downloading, storing, and analysing them locally becomes impractical, while configuring suitable computational and AI environments presents significant barriers. This article presents a new platform-based approach that brings data, computation, and artificial intelligence tools and applications together, enabling more effective, transparent, and scalable Open Science.
- Read the full article
EOSC Data Commons: Building Europe’s Next-Generation Research Data Infrastructure
- Authors: Enol Fernández (Principal Software Architect, EGI Foundation), Xavier Salazar (Senior Strategy and Innovation Officer, EGI Foundation) and Ilaria Fava (Communications Specialist & Community Engagement Manager, EGI Foundation)
- Overview: EOSC Data Commons is a new European initiative to build the next generation of federated research data infrastructure. Researchers often know the data they need exists but cannot find it or access it easily. EOSC Data Commons tackles this fragmentation head-on by making cross-border discovery and reuse far more practical.
- Read the full article
ENVRI-Hub: A Science Gateway for Open Environmental Research
- Authors: Federico Drago (Communications Specialist & Digital Communications Manager, EGI Foundation), Delphine Dobler (Euro-ARGO ERIC), and Ulrich Bundke (Forschungszentrum Jülich / IAGOS AISBL)
- Overview: The new ENVRI-Hub platform, developed by the ENVRI-Hub NEXT project, serves as a central science gateway for Europe's environmental research. It demonstrates how interoperable Virtual Research Environments can accelerate collaborative Open Science and make FAIR data actionable for tackling global challenges.
- Read the full article
For more information on the full special theme issue, visit the ERCIM News website.
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EOSC Beyond
RI-SCALE
RI-SCALE empowers Research Infrastructures by providing scalable computational platforms for AI-driven data analysis, improving data
EOSC Data Commons
EOSC Data Commons: Building a Collaborative Future for Research Data
ENVRI-Hub NEXT
ENVRI-Hub NEXT consolidates and advances the robust conceptual and technical structure established by the ENVRI-Hub