Countdown to Community Exchange 2024: 5 Internet2 Insights You’ll Hear in Chicago

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By Amber Rasche - Senior Communications Specialist, Internet2

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

It’s an event that evolves each year to reflect the latest technology trends, big questions, and emerging challenges across research and higher education. But one common thread underlies every Community Exchange: by the community, for the community.

Deeply embedded and in tune with community needs and priorities, Internet2 leadership and staff are eager to share their insights, too. That includes the latest developments, solutions, and initiatives that will continue to shape our efforts in 2024.

In this Countdown to Community Exchange 2024 series, we’re sharing five Internet2 insights you’ll hear from Internet2 staff and community collaborators in Chicago, March 4-7. First up: the future of identity and access management.

Don’t miss the chance to network and shape the future of R&E. Register now for CommEX24!

Internet2 Insight #1: Preparing for the Future of Identity and Access Management

As the community celebrates InCommon’s 20th birthday this year, look ahead to see what’s in store for the future of identity and access management. Internet2’s Kevin Morooney will join InCommon Steering Committee chair Marc Wallman, North Dakota State University, to present the InCommon Futures 2 final report on March 6. The report — anticipated to be released right before CommEX24 — details outcomes from last year’s visioning exercise to shape a vibrant future for InCommon and IAM across the R&E community. For an international take on the IAM futures space, don’t miss the session about Trust, Identity, and Access for Learning and Research Across Borders led by GÉANT.

“It is hard to believe that InCommon is 20 years old this year. I don’t know where InCommon’s parents thought it would be, but for myself, it has become a critically important player in the nation’s research and education digital infrastructure. The environment in which InCommon operates has changed so, so drastically over this period that the adage ‘What got you here won’t get you there’ looms large as the InCommon community forges a new future. This presentation will address how we set out to develop new coordinates and new ways to get to them in the years ahead.”

— Kevin Morooney, Vice President of Trust and Identity and NET+, Internet2

Have a question about commercial single sign-on solutions and multilateral federation for trusted access to R&E resources and collaborations? The answer doesn’t need to be either/or. InCommon’s new identity provider as a service (IdPaaS) can help institutions connect their commercial IdP solutions (think Microsoft Entra ID or Okta) to work seamlessly in the InCommon Federation. Internet2’s Albert Wu, Ann West, and Brandon Moustafa will share more about this service during the IdPaaS Program: Federation Made Easy session on March 5.

A lot is changing (and quickly!) in the realm of digital credentials and electronic wallet technology. Internet2’s Nicole Roy will join Dmitri Zagidulin, MIT, and Leif Johansson, SUNET, for a Whither Wallets? panel on March 5. The session will help IAM and IT security professionals, CIOs, and other IT leaders prepare to discuss the impacts of these technologies on their institutions and get involved in community activities to ensure solutions meet their needs.

“The world of web browsers, devices, and commercial identity is changing. We must prepare to adapt — and, in some cases, lead work on how to make use of new privacy-preserving and end-user-empowering identity technologies to enable secure access to the resources our community needs for teaching, learning, and research. The use cases for this access within the global R&E community are often unique and lead industry needs by a decade or more.”

— Nicole Roy, InCommon Director of Technology and Strategy, Internet2

Up Next

Stay tuned later this week for part two of our Countdown to Community Exchange. We’ll preview the insights Internet2 staff and community collaborators will share at CommEX24 about translating research needs into human and technical support solutions.

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About the Author(s)

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Amber Rasche arasche@internet2.edu

Senior Communications Specialist, Internet2

Amber Rasche contributes to Internet2’s strategic communications and public relations efforts. She has 10 years of experience with the research and education community, serving previous roles in both higher education information technology and government high-performance network environments.