This post is part of a series aiming to explain and give examples of what it means to be part of the Community Programme. Read the previous blogs “Added Value and Impact”, “Who is it for?” and “Ideas that turn into realities”.
“I have had meetings with NRENs in Africa, Middle East and Latin America as a result of discussions in SIG-MSP”
In strictly economic terms, the multiplier effect measures the impact that a change, regardless of how small, in a specific activity has on the total output.
How is this applied to the GÉANT Community Programme (GCP)? It is what springs from the regular meetings and formal conversations, such as informal meetings and conversations outside of the scheduled ones. It is the subscription to the SIGs and TFs mailing lists, which allows the participants to always keep an eye open for new success stories, inspiration, ideas or simply to stay updated; or the in-between meeting breaks that have brought some NRENs to interact and collaborate outside scheduled meetings as a result of the trust networks developed and information shared in the working groups and events. It is the behind the scenes of organising meetings at a host NREN, which allows for a better opportunity to get to know the organisation, its activities and work environment.
“After the scheduled meetings we have had NREN to NREN interactions for services such as spam filtering, videoconference, e-mail, public procurement, etc.”
These are all very hard factors to measure quantitatively as they happen in the background and are not promoted publicly as other activities of the GCP. However, it goes back to the very meaning of Community and the mission that fuel the programme, that of providing optimal conditions for the Research and Education communities to collaborate in an open and inclusive environment and supporting each other to overcome challenges and progress faster.
If you are interested in reading more about the Community Programme, its activities and specialised groups, visit the website: https://community.geant.org/
