Check out the voice of the President of the Directing Board of the Salvadorian Advanced Network for Research, Science and Education, RAICES, and his vision about RedCLARA and collaboration. Read this and other interviews in the book “RedCLARA: Name, voice and instrument of collaboration in Latin America”.

What comes to your mind when you hear a researcher talking about collaboration?
I think collaboration is the only way to move science forward nowadays. It is very difficult that today somebody can work on his/her own in the field of research, in any scientific discipline, either social areas, health, exact and natural sciences or engineering, since results, experiments, measurements, analyses, failures and advances must be shared, taking into consideration the respect for the merits of every person and institution.

The cost of implementing and maintaining laboratory, equipment and computers to develop research projects are high if they are covered by one single institution, or even sometimes by one single country. Talents, capacities and experiences are also assets which produce more if they are shared.

This collaboration between peers is carried out both inside a country and at an international level, and the most efficient way to accomplish it is through advanced networks, of which RedCLARA and its member national networks are the best representatives in the region.

What would you say is the most important aspect of research and education networks?
The capacity to share information and establish novel ways of cooperation between peers, researchers and teachers of similar disciplines. These networks enable scientists and researchers interested in various phenomena and issues which are part of the research agendas of countries and institutions can review and build on the experience and results of other colleagues, both in the Latin American region and across the globe.

Research and education networks facilitate and promote collaboration between researchers in a country and between them and their peers in other nations. It has become an efficient coupling which takes place when research and education networks themselves as formal organisations manage the advanced networks in a country.

Thus, the most relevant contribution of advanced networks in the provision of a communications channel with updated technology and in constant progress, with high speed channels with the lesser rate of shared use and therefore with the greatest efficiency and quality.

How would you describe the role of RedCLARA both at a regional and global level?
RedCLARA is a facilitating and articulating entity for the development of research projects in different areas of scientific knowledge in Latin America. This organisation is bound to become the meeting point for researchers, scientists and higher education teachers in the region, providing efficient connectivity at high speed, virtual spaces and modern tools for communication, storage and processing of scientific information.

For the rest of the world, RedCLARA is already a model which represents Latin America in international forums which deal with the development of e-Science. To a great extent, RedCLARA knows about and collects concerns, national situations and the state of development of local science and technology in our countries. It is a qualified mouthpiece, since its members are precisely the national research and education networks in Latin American countries, and this allows it to keep the information it manages updated, present the region’s situation to the rest of the world and have an impact on the materialisation of projects for mutual benefit.

What has been the key important aspect of the ALICE2 project for your network?
ALICE2 and its predecessor, ALICE, have been fundamental for the existence and development of RAICES, El Salvador’s national research and education network. As in other countries that are members of RedCLARA, before this project there wasn’t a national research and education network, and it was thanks to this opportunity of accomplishing connectivity with financial support from the European Commission that the national actors involved decided to get organised and constitute RAICES.

The ALICE2 project has also provided many hours and ways of training, and human resources education; creation and development of research communities; provision of speedy, modern and communication tools which are efficient for researchers themselves; initiatives which aims at the inclusion of more countries, more networks, more local members and more scientists; and a sustainable strategy of continental connectivity beyond frontiers.

All these accomplishments have made it possible for the members of our RAICES network to be in contact with peers in Latin America and other regions. This is a new way available for local researchers and teachers to have communication and eventually work together with other colleagues. Likewise, it is a way in which our members can learn about opportunities for collaborative projects.

How important is for RAICES the collaboration with other national and regional networks and how do you collaborate globally?
For a network like RAICES, which has initiated its work and has been motivated at the same time by the existence of RedCLARA, collaboration with other national and regional networks is a strategic activity which supports its own growth and development.

Unfortunately, El Salvador is not a country which stands out because of its high volume of research activities or great scientific development. The alliance and possible participation of our universities in collaborative projects at a regional level is a significant support in the search for our own development, since it makes it possible to come across other work groups which have made more progress in these issues.

If RedCLARA did not exist, what would the science, research and innovation scenario in your country be like?
We would still be trying to work in each institution in isolation on these so important issues. Although there are other dynamics, initiatives and projects which have been being implemented for some time, the existence of RedCLARA has made it possible to have some resources which otherwise would be neither available nor accessible for our researchers, teachers and institutions.

In other words, although there would be some progress made, I think the existence of RedCLARA has enabled us to visualise and, in some cases, experiment other ways to develop projects in the field of science and technology.

Could you describe your view of research and education networks in the future?
They will be an increasingly relevant actor in the development of scientific research as a driver for countries’ development, as they make it possible that papers, projects and result dissemination reach more people, work groups and institutions.

Research and education networks, both national and regional ones, will provide top-quality services as regards communications, data and information transmission, community management, project development and other forms of progress for the region’s science and technology.

According to your point of view, what should be the role of RedCLARA over the next five years?
Apart from the telecommunications infrastructure’s maintenance, management and permanent improvement for exclusive use by national academic networks, it must continue to articulate the collaborative work of research communities, both the ones it has promoted and those which approach the network, already existed or are being created, in any field of knowledge.

The permanent improvement and innovation in the services it offers must have a predominant place in RedCLARA’s tasks, especially those which enable it to better show partners the advantages of taking part in these regional networks.

It must also continue making efforts to expand the quantity and quality of network members, reaching countries still not connected and institutions that still do not take part of these benefits.

Together with its members, national networks, RedCLARA must continue working to make the importance of having and expanding this important tool for e-Science development visible for political actors, decision-makers and authorities from the NRENs’ member institutions.

It must keep and strengthen its alliances with other peer actors across the globe, in order to succeed in transferring these benefits to its Latin American members.

All these actions and other additional ones must aim at ensuring the sustainability of RedCLARA and the NRENs, based on the everyday and expanded use of the communications infrastructure, as well as the services and tools provided by RedCLARA, with the common goal of making innovation, science and technology in our region move forward.