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By Sean O’Brien, Internet2 Director, NET+ Cloud Services Program
We are pleased to share that Internet2 higher education members may now utilize the custom terms of service developed as part of the Internet2 NET+ Google Cloud Platform (GCP) program to realize the benefits of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Science and Technology Research Infrastructure for Discovery, Experimentation, and Sustainability (STRIDES) Initiative. As a result, NIH-funded researchers may now leverage the NET+ GCP terms to use a single agreement to access GCP for their enterprise and research needs as part of the STRIDES Initiative.
These terms and conditions were negotiated by Internet2 higher education members specifically to meet the unique needs of research and higher education institutions. We are enabling this option for Internet2 higher education members as a direct result of requests from higher education institutions and community groups, such as the NET+ Business Procurement and Legal Advisory Committee.
Google Cloud was the first industry partner to join the NIH STRIDES Initiative, which aims to modernize the biomedical research ecosystem by reducing economic and process barriers to accessing commercial cloud services. STRIDES offers customized training and promotes best practices designed to help researchers achieve optimal use of cloud-based research technologies.
Internet2’s NET+ Cloud Services program shares the NIH STRIDES Initiative’s goal to reduce barriers to utilizing cloud computing resources for the research and education community. The NET+ program allows Internet2’s higher education members to work together to evaluate cloud services, negotiate custom contract terms, and convene communities of practice in meaningful ways to support the adoption and ongoing operations of these services.
Carahsoft Technology Corp®., The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supports onboarding for both the NET+ GCP program and the NIH STRIDES Initiative. Those interested in leveraging the NET+ GCP agreement may contact I2google@carahsoft.com; those with an existing NET+ GCP agreement interested in utilizing STRIDES may contact NIHSTRIDES@carahsoft.com.
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