Long-Term Ecosystem Research in Norway (LTER-Norway) is part of the wider LTER-Europe (eLTER) which was accepted onto the ESFRI (the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures) Roadmap in 2018. Supported by 27 European countries with their wide-ranging national scientific communities representing more than 165 research organizations, eLTER is an essential component of world-wide efforts to better understand the structure and function of terrestrial, freshwater and transitional water ecosystems, and their long-term response to environmental, societal and economic drivers. The inclusion on the ESFRI roadmap opened for further development of eLTER research infrastructure (RI) through two preparatory H2020 projects, eLTER PLUS and eLTER PPP, that was launched in 2020. By being the national contact point (NCP) for LTER-Norway, Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA) takes part in eLTER PPP, although with a limited funding (22.5 k€ over 5 years) from the European Commission. In order to support preparation and clarification of potential LTER-Norway participation in the further implementation of eLTER RI there is a need for a considerable effort in the national LTER network, which will require resources both from internal and external sources. Being part of eLTER RI will, however, imply large benefits for the Norwegian LTER partner institutions and LTER-Norway as a whole, by giving access to a large and highly recognized European community of ecosystem research.
