European research infrastructures join forces against SARS-CoV-2

A dedicated website – www.esfri.eu/covid-19 – has been activated and is being regularly updated with services and tools provided by national and European research infrastructures to scientists, medical personnel in the field and health system administrators fighting Covid-19.

We are currently experiencing a public health crisis unprecedented in recent decades. As thousands of European citizens are infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus every day and the number of casualties is increasing rapidly, Europe needs a coordinated effort of all available knowledge and resources to fight the pandemic. Coordinated research effort, services to researchers, and timely data sharing have hereby critical role.

The opportunities provided by European research infrastructures to support the science-led response to the Covid-19 outbreak are extremely important. As part of the EU measures on the pandemic, the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) is therefore putting all its effort in helping to coordinate actions and investments among research infrastructures at the European and national levels for the development of diagnostic tools, treatments and vaccines, as well as the analysis of the economic and social impacts of the implemented confinement measures.

ESFRI is helping the scientific community by aggregating information about dedicated services offered by research infrastructures and communicating all relevant actions as broadly as possible. To this end, ESFRI has created a focused webpage that lists and provides quick links to the information gathered. This webpage, which will be regularly updated as more information becomes available, is accessible at www.esfri.eu/covid-19.

“The information we have gathered shows the value and direct impact that research infrastructures have on researchers, citizens and society and gives our communities the opportunity to coordinate their work to help address the great challenge we are now facing,”, Jan Hrusak, ESFRI Chair, emphasised in his call-for-information addressed to all European research infrastructures.

ESFRI would also like to invite all national and European research infrastructures to support this effort by offering any further information on their Covid-19 related activities and services in order to be added to the webpage. Please use covid-19@esfri.eu and esfri@ec.europa.eu for any communication.