The strategy for the enlargement

The strategy for the enlargement of MINERVA is based on two priorities:

• to enlarge the existing Thematic Network
• to set the basis for the next Network of Excellence

The "vision" is that MINERVA should become a pole of attraction:

• it should be able to get on board different subject (Ministries, international organisations, the industrial sector),
• it should look beyond Europe,
• it should dialog with the research world (e.g. other EU and national projects).

Two levels of participation and corresponding formal agreements have been chosen:

• the standard Membership Agreement, as foreseen by the IST Model Contract,
• the MINERVA Co-operation Agreement.

The first level is the strongest and the most committing.
The Membership Agreement will be used for the Ministries and governmental institutions of the countries not yet represented in MINERVA.
For example, the Membership Agreement has been signed so far by the ministerial representatives of Greece, The Netherlands and Denmark.
A contract amendment is eventually foreseen to be requested to the European Commission, in order to formally get the new Members on board.

The second level is lighter, more flexible and very important as well.
During the last months, a large number of different organisations expressed their willingness to get involved in the project and to be informed about MINERVA progress.

The Co-operation Agreement is the instrument to be used with all those organisations who want to participate to the MINERVA Working Groups.
When one organisation signs the Co-operation Agreement, it receives a "welcome package", which consists of the following documentation:

• MINERVA brochure;
• description of the active Working Groups and contacts of the persons of reference;
• the MINERVA Participant Profile Form, through which the new participant presents itself, its interest in the project and the type of contribution it is expected to bring to MINERVA;
• any other relevant document, possibly produced in the frame of the Working Groups.

All the organisations which signed the Co-operation Agreement will be invited to the meeting of the Users Group, which will take place annually. The next Users Group meeting is expected to be held in October 2003, as attached to the International Conference on Cultural Preservation, in Florence.
In addition to the European Ministries, the following targets are considered:

• international organisations (e.g. UNESCO, Council of Europe, EBLIDA, etc.;
• other projects, where possibly some of the MINERVA partners are involved, (e.g. Pulmann, Culturenet, Delos, Cultivate, Erpanet, etc.;- other projects and studies (e.g. DigiCult, Artiste, Crisatel, Mind, etc.);
• extra-European countries (USA, Canada, Japan, the Mediterranean countries);
• industrial enterprises and SMEs;
• universities and research centres.