Towards an Integrated Future for Environmental Science: ENVRI-Hub NEXT Reaches 18-Month Milestone

The ENVRI-Hub NEXT project has completed its first 18 months, marking a significant milestone in the development of the next-generation open-access platform for Europe's environmental research infrastructures (RIs). Since February 2024, the project has transitioned from planning to active implementation, laying a robust technical and collaborative foundation for a more integrated and powerful environmental science community.

"Reaching this 18-month milestone is a testament to the incredible collaboration across our consortium," said Marta Gutierrez, EGI Foundation, ENVRI-Hub NEXT Project Director. "We have successfully established the foundations for an integrated and operational ENVRI-HUB offering the best of what environmental RIs and e-infrastructures have to offer together"

This milestone reflects the hard work of the entire consortium and the growing engagement of our community. Here’s a look at some of the key achievements.

A major focus of this period has been the agile development and integration of the core services that will form the operational ENVRI-Hub.

Technology is only one part of the equation. A successful Hub is built with and for its users.

Launch of the ENVRI-Hub User Group: In February 2025, we officially launched the ENVRI-Hub User Group, which has already grown to include over 50 members from diverse backgrounds. This group is vital for the co-creation of the Hub, providing early feedback to ensure our development meets real-world needs. The first official online meeting was held on 25 September 2025.

A Cohesive ENVRI Identity and Presence: We have consolidated the ENVRI branding and given the ENVRI Community website a visual update, creating a central, recognisable home for all our activities. In collaboration with our sister project ENVRINNOV, we jointly manage communication channels. This includes the ENVRI newsletter and our social media presence, which has now moved its primary engagement to LinkedIn and Bluesky. Follow us on LinkedIn for the latest project updates, news, and opportunities to engage with the community.

A Strong Presence at Major Events: ENVRI-Hub NEXT helped coordinate the successful joint ENVRI Community booth and scientific sessions at the EGU General Assembly 2025 in Vienna, showcasing the power of our collaborative community to thousands of researchers. The booth featured representatives from a wide range of ENVRI-related projects.

We have also initiated our public training activities in May, with a joint webinar co-organised with the EOSC-EVERSE project on “Research Software Quality Assessment”, and expect to host more in the coming months.

The first 18 months have set the stage for an exciting future. Ulrich Bundke, FZJ, ENVRI-Hub NEXT Technical Coordinator, added: "The successful staging deployment proves our technical architecture is sound. In the next phase, we will focus on hardening this environment for production, adding more content and starting public operations." 

As we move into the second half of the project, we will focus on refining these services based on your feedback, onboarding more data and services, and preparing for a wider public release.

This progress is a testament to the power of collaboration. We extend a huge thank you to all the project partners, RIs, and community members who have contributed to this journey.

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The EGI Foundation is the project coordinator of ENVRI-Hub NEXT. This article was first published on the ENVRI Community website.