The most visible forum for ICT research and innovation in Europe "ICT2013:  Create, Connect and Grow", took place on the 6-8th of November 2013 in Vilnius (Lithuania). The event consisted of c.250 sessions and 200 exhibitors; and brought together lead thinkers and people driving European ICT research and innovation. A total of 6.000 persons participated in the event, including researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs, industry representatives, and politicians.

ICT 2013 allowed participants to share best practices and experiences in big data management, and provided them an excellent opportunity to learn about the current state of ICT research in Europe and the new Horizon2020 Framework programme for Research and Innovation.

The pro-iBiosphere project was strongly represented during the event by means of an exhibition booth and a networking session co-organised with other EC-funded projects (i.e. ei4Africa, Chain-reds, e-Science Talk). The exhibition booth entitled ‘e-Infrastructures at work and the future of research' showcased information from these four projects. Potential contacts were made with 20 stakeholders comprising projects on biodiversity data,  EC-funded projects managing big data infrastructures (i.e. platforms, storage);  and engineers specialised in semantic integration,  enhancement, oncology, and autonomics.

The networking session on ‘What does the future hold for e-Science and Big Data?' brought together researchers, data owners and service providers (including SMEs) to explore the future for e-science and how to deliver open access to data through Horizon2020. During this session, the pro-iBiosphere project (represented by Plazi) presented its vision and potential impact to the biodiversity community and beyond. The networking session led to better understanding of how e-infrastructures can solve scientific challenges.  Additional information is available here.