Research and Education Networks around the World the

Research and Education Networks around the World: the Internet 2 View Douglas E. Van Houweling President and CEO, Internet 2 dvh@internet 2. edu Meeting on Enhancing Research and Education Networking within and to Africa 5 May 2005 Arlington, VA

Outline • An overview: Internet 2 International Partnerships • The rationale for National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) • NRENs around the world • • Africa Europe and the Middle East Asia and Oceania Latin America

Internet 2 today • US-based membership organization: • • Goals • • 207 regular University members 66 Corporate members 42 Affiliate members Create a leading edge network capability for the national research community Enable revolutionary Internet applications Ensure the rapid transfer of new network services and applications to the broader Internet community US National Research and Education Network • Internet 2 Abilene Backbone Network • 10 Gbps backbone • Over 218 participants • Expanded access: over 30 -based state-based education networks across the country • State, regional, metropolitan networks connecting campuses • Move to facilities-based networks • International partnerships: • Close to 50 International partner organizations roughly representing over 75 countries

Internet 2: Partnerships • Partnerships are key to Internet 2 • International partners are of strategic importance to Internet 2 • Global collaborations • Science, research, teaching and learning area all increasingly global • Support global collaborations with an equivalent GLOBAL leading edge networking capability – through partners around the world • Interoperability, joint development of new technologies • International Partner Program: • Build effective partnerships in other countries • With organizations of similar goals/objectives and similar constituencies • In support of the Internet 2 membership • 50 organizations (International partners) representing over 75 countries

Current International Partners Europe Asia-Pacific ARNES (Slovenia) AAIREP (Australia) BELNET (Belgium) APAN (Asia-Pacific) CARNET (Croatia) APAN-KR (Korea) CESnet (Czech Republic) CERNET/CSTNET/ DANTE (Europe) NSFCNET (China) DFN-Verein (Germany) JAIRC (Japan) GIP RENATER (France) JUCC (Hong Kong) GRNET (Greece) NECTEC/UNINET (Thailand) HEAnet (Ireland) NG-NZ (New Zealand) HUNGARNET (Hungary) Sing. AREN (Singapore) INFN-GARR (Italy) TANet 2 (Taiwan) NORDUnet (Nordic Countries) POL-34 (Poland) FCCN (Portugal) Red. IRIS (Spain) RESTENA (Luxembourg) RIPN (Russia) SANET (Slovakia) Stichting SURF (Netherlands) SWITCH (Switzerland) TERENA (Europe) JISC, UKERNA (United Kingdom) Middle East Israel-IUCC (Israel) Qatar Foundation (Qatar) Americas Africa CANARIE (Canada) MCIT [EUN/ENSTIN] (Egypt) CEDIA (Ecuador) CLARA (Latin Related America & Caribbean) partnerships CUDI (Mexico) CNTI (Venezuela) APRU (Asia/Pacific) CR 2 NET (Costa Rica) IEEAF REUNA (Chile) World Bank RETINA (Argentina) RNP (Brazil) SENACYT (Panama)

Supporting science user communities and beyond • Research increasingly dependent on access globally to resources, collaborators, data, scientific instruments. • Access to scientific instruments with specific geolocation needs (e. g. , optical and radio telescopes) • Unique instruments: impractical or unfeasible for each country to “afford” for its own (e. g. , Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Geneva, electron microscope in Japan) • Access to/collecting geo-specific data and getting it back for analysis, visualization, sharing, prevention • Environmental, Atmospheric/Oceanographic Studies • Access to the US (resources) and to non-US resources • Teaching and learning • …. and many more 6

US International Connectivity • Links between the US and other countries funded through various sources • Outside the US: many of our partners procure and operate links from their country to the US • US-funded: • US NSF provides funding through IRNC (was HPIIS) program for some links • DOE provides some funding for CERN-procured and operated links to US • Internet 2 funds used for some connectivity • Donations: IEEAF has made donations from Tyco Telecom available to the R&E networking community • Transit via partner networks • Ex. Reach many countries via GEANT, APAN, CLARA • International exchange points • Around US borders (including north and south borders of US) • Facilitate connectivity with Internet 2 infrastructure and other US national networks • More than 60 countries reachable via the Internet 2 Abilene backbone network

Why R&E Networks? • Provide capabilities beyond commercial ISPs • A question of purpose • Low congestion allows for use of new applications • Provides platform for providing key R&E collaborationsupporting infrastructure • Authentication and authorization • Shared use of computation facilities – i. e. , the Grid • Potential to mitigate constraints in non-competitive marketplaces • Aggregate demand of a key user community • Different demand patterns than residential, business users • Collaboration among R&E community • Where much more can be achieved together than separately

NRENs in general • The idea of national research (and education) networks continues to be popular • New NRENs in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Mediterranean, Middle East – Pakistan, New Zealand, Jordan • Typically one per country • Connect universities • Sometimes also connect government research labs • Other education institutions • Not-for-profit or government/ministry-based • Continuum from commercial Internet access, to reliableleading-edge (production) to experimental to network research facilitating networks • But focus of most effort on supporting the high-performance, leading-edge needs of high-end science (e. g. , UK e-Science, US Cyber. Infrastructure) and other high-end research, education, clinical needs

Our understanding of where NRENs currently exist Current Mo. U Partners Developing Partnerships Related Efforts in Formation

Global research and education network infrastructure • Interconnecting NRENs • Regional (continental-scale) backbone growth • Increasingly regionalized networking • European GEANT, Asian cluster efforts, Latin American red. CLARA • Continental backbones providing transit to other regions • Aggregate inter-continental bandwidth now sometimes greater than continental bandwidth • Trend away from US as center of the Internet world • Many initiatives outside the US are engaging and establishing leadership roles in connecting to the world • European – South American connectivity • European – Asian connectivity 12/08/03 11

Europe • High-performance R&E networks – pan-European network is GEANT • GEANT 2 backbone in midst of finalizing procurement • Several national networks building out owned/leased fiber (NL, CH, PL, CZ, SK) • Wavelength-based international facilities and connections: Nether. Light, Czech Rep. , Nordic. Light, UKLight • European-funded connectivity to other regions than Europe • • SEEREN (southeastern Europe) ALICE (Latin America) TEIN 2 (Southeast Asia) EUMEDCONNECT (Mediterranean) • Algeria, Cyprus, Israel, Malta, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey now connected • Trans-Atlantic connectivity between US and Europe • Multiple links

Middle East • Qatar Foundation – connectivity for Doha Education City universities and U. Qatar to US (NYC, LA) • Interest in U. A. E. , Oman occasionally • Pan Arab Research and Education Network Feasibility Study • Canadian initiative

Americas • Latin America • red. CLARA regional backbone network up and running • emerging NRENs in Caribbean • North America • Canada’s leading role • NSF-funded WHREN/LILA project • Connectivity between North and South America

Asia-Oceania • APAN: Asia-Pacific Advanced Network • Country-owned point 2 point links contributed to APAN • Most connect to APAN/Tokyo XP • Cluster efforts (Northeast, Southeast, Oceania) to create regional backbones • South Asia • New Pakistan NREN; ERNET and Garuda in India • None connected yet to global R&E net • Central Asia – Virtual Silk project • Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan now connected (via DFN (Germany) • Limited satellite connectivity • Australia • Connectivity to Fiji, Hawaiian Islands, Japan

Africa • North Africa – EUMEDCONNECT • Egypt (Ministry of Information and Communications Technology) connecting to US (already transiting via GEANT) • South Africa – TENET tunnel to GEANT/London • NSF-funded study grant (G. Sadowsky, J. Mack, D. Riley) • This Meeting

Challenges for NRENs • Many NRENS around the world are still dealing with traditional telecom models and costs • Lack of competition and price-competitive capacity (intracountry) and between countries • Many still largely based on commercial Internet services at low speeds • Regulatory frameworks • Limited global connectivity • Beyond networks, applications, content, sustainability and the human factor: • Country developments are varied; disparities in capabilities and resources • Lack of awareness among policy makers and user communities for long-term strategic support to sustain networking for national S&T and economic development • Lack of funding for R&E and for NRENs

Some lessons? • Example: in Latin America, projects like AMPATH and the CLARA initiative have played a role in the way in which LA&C countries communicate among themselves, and with countries outside the region • NRENs regionalized networking can aggregate traffic within the region enabling more effective routing to other parts of the world • NRENs can play a role in supporting national science and linking to international community • Generally, there is improved connectivity that will also support improved and new collaborations with partners in other regions. • NREN role can be: • Strategic role: policy/regulatory, capacity building, and ‘bridging’ • Establishing concrete regional and core frameworks around which to organize national and international support

Contacts • Internet 2 International • Heather Boyles heather@internet 2. edu • Ana Preston apreston@internet 2. edu • International. internet 2. edu