EGI Paves the Way for a Greener Future

The successful GREAT project laid the groundwork for the Green Deal Data Space (GDDS), fostering collaboration and data sharing across Europe to address environmental challenges. EGI's contributions throughout the project played a pivotal role, including facilitating the interaction between the GDDS and the Data Space Support Centre (DSSC) ecosystem.

EGI's expertise proved instrumental in several key aspects of the GDDS. By design, the GDDS is envisioned as a key component of the DSSC ecosystem. Through our work on the project, EGI actively fostered this connection.

EGI's distributed data infrastructure design expertise played a key role in defining the technical architecture of the GDDS. The document analyses the presented GDDS DE technical blueprint with respect to the Data Space Support Centre (DSSC) vision and other relevant initiatives (e.g., DSBA framework, DestinE, Simpl, etc.) and provides inputs to the definition of the GDDS implementation roadmap.

Suggested architecture underpins seamless data interoperability and enables functionalities such as:

EGI's involvement in WP4 focused on establishing a robust governance framework and exploring sustainable business models for the GDDS. The activities that have led to this framework include an assessment of the current landscape on dataspaces initiatives, requirements gathering from the reference use cases and data sharing initiatives, consultations with stakeholders, advisory board and legal and ethical advisor, validation of results and alignment with the Data Space Support Centre (DSSC) assets and other sectoral data spaces.

This work ensured:

Mark Dietrich explains, "The GDDS helps companies translate good intentions into action.  A solid governance and legal framework for the Green Deal Data Space allows data to be shared legally, and with proper respect for data sovereignty, and enables companies to participate in the GDDS with their critical data so that they can have a positive impact on the environment and our climate.  ”

EGI actively participated in defining the comprehensive roadmap for the GDDS implementation and operational deployment. This Roadmap Version 1.0 expands the work initiated by the EC, the Data Space Support Center and the JRC policy report on European Data Spaces – Scientific Insights into Data Sharing and Utilisation at Scale in the context of the EU’s Green Deal strategy and the European Data Strategy.

“Think of the GREAT project roadmap as the master plan for the GDDS. It's not just a few scribbles on a napkin! This is a detailed breakdown of all the steps we need to take to bring the GDDS to life. It's like a recipe with all the ingredients and instructions so we can make this Data Space a reality. Of course, just like any good recipe, we might need to tweak things as we start cooking. The implementation phase will be our chance to see how well the plan works in practice", emphasises Marta Gutiérrez David, EGI's Community Support Specialist.

EGI contributed to stakeholder engagement activities, bringing together a diverse group of data providers, users, and intermediaries. This included the organisation of events, such as scientific sessions, splinter meetings, and a town hall meeting at the European Geoscience Union (EGU) meetings, events that fostered discussions and collaboration around the GDDS, and EGI also significantly contributed to the project's visibility – including in international events. EGI also ensured the GDDS was showcased at DSS symposiums, EGi Conference and EOSC-related events, where we promoted collaboration between Data Spaces and the broader European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) initiative. Finally, EGI actively supported the organisation of the final GREAT project event, ensuring its success and maximising outreach. By undertaking these initiatives, EGI effectively raised awareness of the GDDS project and its goals to a broader audience within the environmental data and research communities and ensured their views were considered in the implementation of the project.

“We weren't just working behind the scenes on the GDDS. We were at the Stakeholder Forums and out there at events like the EGU and COP talking to researchers, data providers, policy-makers – anyone involved. We wanted to get the conversation going, make sure the GDDS will be built with everyone in mind, " says Magdalena Brus, Communications lead at EGI.

EGI's significant contributions in these critical areas of the GREAT project demonstrate its unwavering commitment to supporting environmental sustainability initiatives. The Green Deal Data Space has the potential to revolutionise the way environmental data is accessed, shared, and utilised, paving the way for a greener future for all.