Dear <<First Name>>,

We hope you are doing well in these uncertain times. After closely monitoring developments with the novel coronavirus, we have made the decision to make the Smart Great Lakes Initiative workshop a virtual convening. We are confident in this decision, which was made with the health of our participants and the broader community in mind.

We hope you'll join us for an afternoon of exploring ways we can advance technological applications that can improve our understanding, management, and use of the Great Lakes. After a successful workshop in Toronto, Canada last year, the Great Lakes Observing System, Cleveland Water Alliance and the Council of the Great Lakes Region are excited to partner with Current to host a US-focused Smart Great Lakes Initiative workshop on Zoom (link to be sent to attendees prior to 4/21/20).

The Problem We Want to Solve: For the past several decades, scientists, citizens, and policy makers have worked creatively to address Great Lakes challenges including the spread of invasive species, aging water infrastructure, and a changing economy and climate. Today, the Great Lakes region continues to work towards greater collaboration and a better understanding of the lakes. It is now understood that a more connected information ecosystem can help address a broad variety of challenges currently facing the region.

The traditional approach to problem solving has been limited by single use, disposable data, the high cost of technology, and barriers to data sharing. Fortunately, there has been a shift in the technology landscape making it easier and faster than ever before to access valuable, accurate information in a timely manner. Dramatic advances in smart technologies, communication pathways, processing workflows, and information dissemination further enable "smart," information-driven solutions.

Our Solution: Event partners are working to build an information ecosystem based on smart technologies that improve the understanding, use, and management of the lakes. This ecosystem will connect the region with advanced data management and analysis, leveraging technology innovations that get people more high-value information, on demand.

Making the Great Lakes smart requires coupling the development of a new technology platform with the creation of common policy goals to enable technology innovation, data gathering, improved monitoring, and greater binational collaboration.