The ultimate aim of the GSEU project is to create a sustainable Geological Service for Europe (GSE), a centralised resource that supports the Energy Transition, Raw Materials demand and EU Net Zero aims, informs and provides wisdom and understanding to policymakers at national and European level, and is a source of knowledge about the ground beneath our feet and its effect on our lives to all citizens.
To this end, the GSEU team met recently to hone the vision for a GSE – what expertise will we need? Will we be able to provide on-demand access to the experts capable of interpreting the data, information and knowledge that is needed? How can we achieve that? Why is a GSE different to what is currently available through EGS? How can we engage with the end-users in a way that makes a real difference?
Further discussions included what requirements a future GSE might have in terms of a physical structure and a funding model – which of the many existing examples might give us the flexibility and sustainability that we need to carry out the ambitious aims that we have.
As with many such plans there are a variety of options, opinions and ideas. The Workshop was successful in creating a series of next steps, all of which will crystallise and focus the team’s efforts throughout the duration of the GSEU project, and begin to make our dreams for a sustainable GSE a reality.
