This is a strange time we all find ourselves in, and very different to how we imagined 2020 would unfold when we rang in the New Year. Here at AAF’s virtual head office, we are working to ensure that everything is business as usual for all our subscribers.
Given the announcement of COVID-19 as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation and the virus’ impact on our global research and education communities, we would like to inform you of the actions AAF has taken to ensure our business can continue to support your teaching, learning and research needs. Despite the uncertainty of COVID-19, we intend to continue to deliver the same quality of technical and customer service to you. The following measures are now in place to ensure continuity of our service.
Macquarie University, one of Australia’s leading research universities recently connected to Australian Access Federation’s (AAF) cloud solution, Rapid Identity Provider (Rapid IdP).
The Biodiversity Climate Change Virtual Lab (BCCVL) is one of the most accessed services via the Australian Access Federation (AAF), the national provider for federated single sign-on. BCCVL’s almost 4000 registered users originate from around the world, including Australian universities, research organisations and government agencies.
With nearly 18 years’ experience in the research and education sector, Paul Sherlock offers a unique perspective on the development of the eResearch landscape in Australia. Current CIO at the University of South Australia, former CAUDIT president and National Research Network project director, and long-standing member of the Australian Access Federation (AAF) Board, Sherlock has witnessed first-hand the emergence and evolution of identity federations both nationally and globally.
First published by Australian Research Data Commons
The Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) is providing further $900k investment to expand the capacity of the Australian Access Federation’s (AAF) managed service Rapid Identity Provider (Rapid IdP).
Located 360 km northeast of Geraldton, Western Australia, lies the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA), one of Australia’s leading radio telescopes. While situated in Australia, a team of partners from Canada, India, Japan, China, New Zealand and the United States are behind the design and ongoing maintenance of the MWA. The vast, radio-silent landscape of Australia’s outback offers ideal conditions to house this internationally significant equipment. Enabling astronomers from around the world to explore the universe, the MWA is a critical part of Australia’s astrophysical research infrastructure.
The Australian Access Federation has been working with APAN (Asia Pacific Advanced Network) to grow Identity Management federations in the Asia Pacific (APAC) Region. With 43 organisations currently participating in APAN, The AAF is providing thought leadership and support for identity federations in the APAC region. Terry Smith the AAF’s Technical Support and Engagement Manager currently chairs the APAN Identity Access Management working group, and is supported by his Co-Chairs, Toby Chan represents the Hong Kong Access Federation and William Wan is representing CARSI (CERNET (China Education and Research Network) Authentication and Resource Sharing Infrastructure). Since 2016 the AAF has been instrumental in assisting Hong Kong and Singapore to set up their national access federations and have been sharing knowledge and skills with the other APAN participants.
Rapid Identity Provider (IdP) is the Australian Access Federation’s (AAF) new cloud hosted service. It provides a fast, easy option to connect your organisation to hundreds of research and education services already connected to the AAF. You configure your organisations AAF connection through the web interface and we take care of the rest.
