Contact: Cindy Ramírez   
or Donna Dennis Muñoz
UTEP Office of University Communications
915/747-5526
                          

UTEP Announces Unprecedented Expansion of Next Generation

Networking Capabilities Between U.S. and Mexico

—First-ever University-Owned Fiber Optic Connection Between U.S. and Mexico

to Enhance International Research Opportunities —

El Paso, TX — Science and technology leaders from the United States and Mexico joined University of Texas at El Paso officials today to launch the first-ever university-owned fiber optic connection between the U.S. and Mexico.

The new high-capacity connection between UTEP and the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez opens the door to unprecedented collaboration opportunities between the two sister universities and 78 Mexican universities and research centers interconnected by Mexico’s Corporación Universitaria para el Desarollo de Internet, A.C. network. The new link will connect the CUDI network to the more than 200 organizations connected to the U.S. Internet2 high-performance backbone network.  

“UTEP is very pleased to have been able to work with our colleagues in Mexico to build an enhanced technology infrastructure that will serve as a huge asset for future education, research and public sector collaborations,” UTEP President Diana Natalicio said.

Less than four years ago, UTEP and UACJ connected using a low-capacity wireless link.

Beginning today, UTEP’s connection to UACJ will provide a link 100 times faster than the original. This enhanced capacity connection will be used primarily for advanced research and instruction, but will also allow connectivity to Internet2’s network for the transport of super-size data files to create interactive distance learning, digital libraries, virtual laboratories and more across the globe

Additionally, UTEP plans to work with other Internet2 members to develop and deploy new Internet applications and make them accessible to the general public in the future.

 Through Internet2’s network, UTEP researchers have been collaborating with scientists at Stanford University to study how desert plants clean contaminated soil. UTEP librarians use Internet2’s network to share data-intensive collections of historical photos.

Next generation networking/pg. 2

Led by more than 200 U.S. universities working with industry and government, Internet2 is a national consortium that works with its member community to develop and deploy advanced network applications and technologies. Its high performance national U.S. backbone, which links over 200 leading U.S. institutions and connects to close to 70 international research networks, enables researchers, scientists and students to collaborate with their peers around the world in ways not possible on today’s commodity Internet.

“We applaud the international connection made here today. This new fiber optic link we are lighting will play a critical role in strengthening the ties — both literally and figuratively — between the U.S. and Mexican research communities,” said Douglas Van Houweling, president and CEO of Internet2. “By bringing together the best minds in research and education in North America via advanced networking, we have opened a new avenue for

extraordinary progress and innovation.”

This latest development in advanced international networking was a joint effort led by UTEP, UACJ, Internet2 and CUDI in collaboration with the cities of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez.

“We finally have our own physical fiber optic connection to the United States research and education networks,” said CUDI CEO Carlos Casasús. “We are pleased that this infrastructure will provide capacity for collaborative work in science and education among the leading academic institutions on both sides of the US-Mexico border for many years to come.”

CUDI, Mexico's National Research and Education Networking organization and an Internet2 partner since 1999, seeks to drive the development of Internet applications and foster the collaboration of its members in research and educational projects in Mexico.

 “We greatly appreciate the efforts of Douglas Van Houweling and his Internet2 team in the United States and Carlos Casasús and the CUDI organization in Mexico for their support of this important binational initiative, and we are honored that the directors of the NSF and CONACyT have joined us to celebrate this major milestone,” Natalicio said. 

The University of Texas at El Paso is a major urban research university with a Mexican-American majority student population. The university serves more than 18,900 students and is one of only 11 higher education institutions across the nation to receive the “Teachers for a New Era” grant from the Carnegie Corporation.

For more UTEP news and information, visit www.utep.edu/horizons