Through discussions and interactions, the impacts of ICRI 2021 contributed to:
-The identification of common interests and challenges in relation to the design, development and use of research infrastructures across a range of scales, and across a range of disciplines
-Improved methods for both assessing and communicating the societal value of research infrastructures
-The identification of opportunities for increased international collaboration amongst participating nations
-The identification and refinement of best practices in a number of areas related to the management and operations of research infrastructures, and
-Increased understanding of the specific challenges of data management and regulation in relation to internationalization of research infrastructures, the training of highly skilled researchers and technicians, the evaluation of research impacts and cross-sectoral collaboration.
Moreover, ICRI 2021 is expected to significantly increase understanding and knowledge of the differences between nations in how research infrastructures are selected, developed, regulated, and used to generate knowledge and foster research excellence. As previous ICRI conferences have shown, learning how research infrastructures are regarded, by researchers, funding organizations, research institutions, and elected officials, and how they are used, in terms of access regimes, governance systems, funding mechanisms, evaluation methodologies, etc., are the most important impacts of the discussions and interactions. The ICRI conferences are a unique opportunity for an increasingly global community to learn about new approaches to all of these matters, share successes and failures with individuals facing similar challenges and build collaborations that would not occur otherwise.
