The European Astrobiology Institute – taking research training, and public engagement to new levels

Fundamental questions in science like “How and when did life emerge on Earth?”, “How did our solar system and life evolve” and “Is there life on other celestial bodies” will not be answered by one discipline alone but require a concerted and coordinated approach involving many researchers with seemingly unrelated scientific backgrounds. Also, the global research landscape is rapidly changing. Boundaries between disciplines disappear and new cross-disciplinary fields emerge. Astrobiology is one of them. Research in such field requires interaction and exchange of ideas and new results between scientists from many countries and fields, something that only larger research communities like the European Research Area can accomplish.

The European Astrobiology Institute (EAI) which was founded in 2019 aims to function as such an entity. It aims to gain Europe a leading position in this field and also  sustains the momentum acquired by two recent initiatives, the COST Action ”Origins and Evolution of Life in the Universe” and the Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership ”European Astrobiology Campus”, which were both highlighted as success stories by the European Union.

The EAI was founded be a consortium of European research entities. So far, 5 large research organisations and more than 20 universities and research centres have joined. EAI collaborates with several related European organizations including ESA, EANA, Europlanet etc. but as a network of institutions fundamentally differs from those bodies. The EAI has the following aims:

• Perform ground-breaking research on key scientific questions in astrobiology
• Disseminate high-quality results of these efforts effectively
• Provide interdisciplinary training for students and early career scientists
• Engage in education on astrobiology on all levels
• Liaise with industry to foster collaborate on technological developments
• Coordinate outreach ad public engagement activities of European astrobiologists
• Act as advisory body and provide high-quality expertise to European research organisations and decision makers
• Ensure the necessary financial means to carry out these activities through a coordinated approach to European funding agencies

The European Astrobiology Institute consists of institutions, but individuals can join its different Working Groups amd Project teams spanning all fields of astrobiology.

There are also working groups on Policy and Funding, Training, Field Work, Education, Infrastructures, Outreach, Media and Corporate Identity, Dissemination and Industry Liaison.

Many activities have been undertaken. Two major Biennial European Astrobiology Conferences (BEACONs) have been organised (La Palma 2023, Iceland 2005), the latest drawing more than 300 participants. Also, many smaller, more  specialised meetings had been held by the institute. The European Astrobiology Campus, functioning as the training unit of the European Astrobiology Institute, has organised a multitude of very successful summer schools and online courses like the EAI Academy. There has also been a cornucopia of  outreach and public engagement efforts that have been culminating in the planetarium movie “Dark Biospheres” which won several major international awards. Initiatives for industry liaisons have also been started.     

Here we present the aims of EAI, its activities, its  future plans as well as the benefits of membership in the institute and suggest possible co-operations with the EGU and other European entities.