Instruct-ERIC, as a partner of the EU-LAC ResInfra project, has been working to deliver a range of solutions and networking platforms, to help drive collaboration between Europe and Latin American research facilities.
This has ranged from symposia, seminars and workshops to internships, calls for access and eight Memoranda of Understanding signed by institutions across Latin America.
The aim of the collaboration has been to understand the requirements of facilities managers and researchers in Latin America countries, and to facilitate the link with European research infrastructures.
Several high profile publications delivered by researchers in Latin America have acknowledged the contribution of European research infrastructures in advancing their study. This is just an indication of the impact of cross-regional collaboration in enhancing science and understanding.
Analysis of the impacts from these projects and collaborations have yielded positive results – networking in conjunction with multiple regions and research infrastructures is the most effective route to take. Whilst huge progress has been made in Latin American countries in terms of NMR, X-ray crystallography and advanced computational research techniques, it still lags behind EU nations in this regard. Bridging this gap through collaboration and partnerships is seen as essential to advancing science and understanding.
The upcoming Latin America – Europe Symposium on Research Infrastructures, hosted by EU-LAC ResInfra and RI-VIS (Instruct-ERIC a partner to both), will bring together research infrastructure managers, researchers and funding bodies from both regions. Following the publication of a bi-regional white paper, this symposium will cover the challenges that face RI’s in LAC countries, and how the implementation of an effective roadmap can benefit both regions.