Innovation zones SURF

Within this innovation zone, SURF focuses on a digitally resilient sector so that everyone in Dutch education and research can do their work openly, safely and without worries.

After all, ICT is inextricably linked to the primary process of our institutions. For the growth and continuity of education and research, it is therefore important that all member institutions and the sector as a whole are and remain resilient to cyber threats. That is the ambition of this innovation zone.

Developments in the field of cybersecurity are moving fast, partly due to AI (see for instance our Cyber Threat Assessment 2025). There are many gains to be made by working together in our sector. In the Cybersecurity Innovation Zone, we determine with members what is needed. Based on this, we develop new services and share knowledge and expertise.

Examples are the renewal of SURFsoc services, the expertise centres for security and privacy, and the setting up of resilience tests. Besides knowledge, we share practical information there in the form of manuals and templates that institutions can use to increase their digital resilience. For example in the field of new technologies (AI and quantum), privacy, compliance, risk management, awareness & training and technical resilience.

This innovation zone focuses on achieving a basic infrastructure in 2027 that allows students to follow education flexibly and efficiently at different institutions. This involves agreements on standards and data sharing (such as OOAPI), the development of services around information exchange and solutions such as SURFeduhub, a single identification for students and staff via an eduID, and options in certification via microcredentials such as edubadges and insights into learning outcomes via eduwallets. SURF is also closely involved in the development of the sector facility Aanmelden, Inschrijven, Intekenen.

Since the start of Npuls, many of the activities of this innovation zone are continued under Npuls' ambition Learning without barriers. SURF remains closely aligned with these developments and the development of future services arising from this ambition.

In 2027, the Dutch education sector (academic higher education, higher professional education and senior secondary vocational education) will have a coherent service portfolio for digital learning resources via SURF. This will enable our instructors and students to put together and use an optimum mix of digital learning resources (open and licensed) in one place. SURF members control the price and conditions of use of publishers.

Matters being worked on in this innovation zone include building professional communities, joint procurement of digital learning materials, setting up a national support desk and developing services such as edusources, NLBron/Sharecontrol and Copyrightcheck.

Since the start of Npuls in 2023, a large number of activities of this innovation zone are continued within the Npuls programme component educational resources. SURF remains closely involved in this. Indeed, Npuls builds on the activities started at SURF around this topic.

In 2027, the Dutch education sector will be able to seize the opportunities of using data for and in education in a transparent and responsible way. Students, teachers, companies and chain partners will have more confidence in the use of data and data technology by weighing it up against the public values we have agreed on together. In addition, thresholds have been further lowered to use data for innovation and quality improvement.

We do this by organising an autonomous and flexible digital infrastructure for the storage, exchange and analysis of study data, and by the broad use of open standards. With the advent of AI, this innovation zone also focuses on the responsible use of AI within education.

Within the Npuls ambition AI & data valuable deployment, many of these activities are being worked on. For instance, the Reference Framework 2.0 has been delivered, the AI-act is being looked at and, within the EduGenAI pilot, a lot of hard work is being done on a front-end platform that can be used to make all kinds of AI applications available in further education. SURF is actively contributing to these activities, including by developing an AI infrastructure in which the AI Hub, GPT-NL and the development of an AI factory play an important role.

By the end of 2027, students will be able to take high-quality education and tests independent of time and place. Teachers will be supported with suitable educational applications and a flexible digital learning environment that meets current and future needs. From SURF, we organise the joint preconditions. For example via the vision tool (digital) testing and assessment. We want to use this to remove the barriers currently experienced by the education sector to deploy online education and digital testing legitimately and under the right conditions, so that it matches the needs and learning process of the student even better. We are also looking at appropriate tooling to make this possible.

Since 2025, the activities of this zone will be continued within the Npuls programme component Digital testing and development, building further on the insights and actions set up by SURF.

By 2027, researchers will be able to share and optimally reuse both sensitive and non-sensitive data according to FAIR principles.

For this innovation zone, it has now been decided, via the SURF Members' Council, to pause and re-examine the possible cross-links between education and research. The dilemma here is both to do justice to the institution-wide challenge regarding the careful use of data in all organisational processes, public values and the role of commercial parties, and to maintain focus on issues such as the handling of personal research data and the integration of data management facilities.

All researchers can focus on their research without worry in 2027, making effective use of the facilities and expertise available in the digital infrastructure.

To maintain and strengthen a strong and high-quality digital infrastructure, the funding of the necessary resources of an integral strategy has been considered.

This integral strategy was determined in 2025 for the various components of the research infrastructure, based on the scientific ambitions for the coming years and with political support for funding. An important condition here is how to deal with the current data centre in Amsterdam, which also looked at energy and sustainability alternatives.

In addition, in 2025 we started preparations for the installation of a European quantum computer that will be linked to the national supercomputer Snellius. We have also started work with Quantum Delta NL to set up a national test network for quantum communications. Another important step is the development of a Dutch AI facility that will transparently and independently enable education and research to create and manage AI applications.

For education, we are working with Npuls on a joint, scalable infrastructure. Based on the needs of institutions, we develop services according to the Education Sector Architectures.

The competences needed by researchers for the digitisation of research are supported by a shared curriculum, through the collaboration between DCCs and research schools. To this end, by 2027, support from institutions and collaborations organised by discipline are connected.

These activities are now designed to support innovation zones make optimal use of infrastructures and strengthen Open Science . A programme 'traineeship for HPC experts' was launched to meet needs from the institutions. A training platform for research data professionals was also launched in collaboration with RDNL. Future collaborations in the ecosystem - with Digital Competence Centres and graduate schools, among others - are being explored.

The research community can responsibly shape the handling of research information (responsible use of research information) and is in charge of sharing, finding and evaluating publicly funded research (digital sovereignty).

SURF's Open Research Information (ORI) roadmap, meanwhile, is a pillar to strengthen open science. This is in line with developments within the Regieorgaan Open Science and the Barcelona Declaration on Open Research Information. We focus on a robust infrastructure for open research, improving the quality and coverage of metadata, and connecting and enriching research information. Adherence to standards and principles hereby strengthens the autonomy and digital sovereignty of the research community.

An increasingly important topic for SURF and its members is public values. This has been added as an innovation zone. Within the digitisation of education and research, together with our members, we pay explicit attention to public values such as autonomy, humanity and justice. Despite increasing attention to these values in digitisation strategies, factors such as the influence of big tech, cyber threats, rapid AI developments and market monopolisation make cooperation increasingly necessary. Here, the focus is on three themes:

• Common digital independence: in doing so, we want to help institutions protect their valuable data and handle data responsibly. SURF also wants to offer valuable alternatives to market parties that do not respect public values.
• Community and collaboration: we increase knowledge and awareness of public values among our members through various means.
• Support and knowledge sharing: we share our expertise and knowledge and contribute to various programmes and initiatives such as GPT-NL, MBO Digitaal learning course, the Collaborative Trust Framework and Npuls.