Annual operating cycle
Nexus Universe runs on one annual cycle: one year of work, one month to build, one week to test, and a planned stand-down, followed by review and renewal. The Global Risks Forum (GRF) governs the cycle within its instruments, through gates G0 to G7. Each stage is designed with an entry condition and an exit record, so that work moves on only when the record shows it is ready, and a failed condition stops the work it governs. No edition is on record yet, so the cycle below is the programme design, not a schedule.
- Institution
- The Global Risks Forum (GRF)
- Service level
- R0: information and enquiries
- 01QuestionNational, regional or institutional priority
- 02EvidenceSTEM foundation of the platform
- 03BuildNexus Foundry
- 04OrganizeNexus Ecosystem
- 05TestNexus Universe (independent site)
- 06PublishNexus Reports
- 07DecideCompetent authorities and institutions, through Nexus Rails
- 08RenewCorrections and the next annual agenda
The short answer.
The Nexus Universe annual operating cycle is one year of work, one month to build, one week to test and a planned stand-down, followed by review and renewal, governed by GRF through gates G0 to G7. Each stage has an entry condition and an exit record, and a failed condition stops the work it governs.
Scoping to review.
Fig.A programme from scoping to the owner's decision. Design, not a record.
Jurisdictions in the Black Sea region.
The jurisdictions that hold authority over this question: countries, their first-level divisions and capitals, shown for the Black Sea region as an example geography for this subject.
Five stages, each with an entry condition and an exit record.
| Stage | The work | To enter | To leave |
|---|---|---|---|
| One year · prepare | National demand, research, institutional participation, monthly working-group delivery, quarterly evidence, technology and resource qualification | Annual mandate, programme owners and provisional resources | An approved mission portfolio, qualified inputs and an achievable build plan |
| One month · build | Assemble the temporary Nexus Core, bind authorised resources, integrate software and data, test security and interoperability, train teams and rehearse | Rights, budget, site safety, technical capacity and mission scope | A Core Build Report, measured readiness, known defects and go or no-go decisions |
| One week · act and test | Controlled exercises, scenario work, benchmarks, independent observation, leadership deliberation and public-safe engagement | Qualified environments, controllers, evaluators, a scenario plan and stop-work authority | Run, decision and observation records, limitations and improvement items |
| Planned stand-down | Stop new work, checkpoint authorised jobs, revoke temporary access, release temporary capacity and seal transferable evidence | An approved closeout plan, retention decisions and accountable operators | A stand-down receipt, a preserved evidence manifest and named open exceptions |
| Following period · review and renew | Validate archives, complete scientific and editorial review, publish approved results and close corrective actions | Persistent owners and retained evidence | Reviewed publications, closed corrections and the next mandate |
The one-day stage is a planned stand-down. It becomes a programme commitment only when the annual programme records its purpose, clock, scope and exceptions. Scientific review, financial reconciliation and corrections continue afterwards.
Why an annual rhythm.
Many risk regimes run on annual or multi-year cycles: budget years, reporting rounds to conventions, hazard seasons. An annual programme lets national and regional institutions bring questions in time for their own planning, and lets lessons feed the next budget round. The rhythm also matches the exercise programmes of many civil protection systems, which plan a cycle of exercises and evaluations each year.
What enters and leaves each part of the year.
| Part of the year | Enters | Leaves |
|---|---|---|
| Year of work | National and regional mission proposals | Admitted missions with owners |
| Build month | Admitted missions, evidence briefs | Versioned arrangements and scenarios |
| Action week | Scenarios, participants, controllers | Exercise logs and observations |
| Stand-down and review | Logs and observations | After-action reports, lessons, corrections |
| Renewal | Lessons | Revised questions for the next year |
Eight gates, each a recorded decision.
- 01
G0 · Annual programme authorised
The mandate sets scope, participating structures, evaluation questions and publication intentions.
- 02
G1 · Missions admitted
Admission decisions with reasons, against published criteria; see national and regional participation.
- 03
G2 · Data and resources qualified
Inputs and contributed infrastructure qualified by the technical office of The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI).
- 04
G3 · Build accepted for exercise
The Core Build Report shows measured readiness and known defects.
- 05
G4 · Controlled live operation authorised
Controllers, evaluators, safety holds and stop-work authority are in place.
- 06
G5 · Evidence sealed and stand-down recorded
A stand-down receipt and a preserved evidence manifest exist.
- 07
G6 · Publication authorised
Results pass scientific and editorial review before release.
- 08
G7 · Renewal reviewed
Lessons and corrective actions feed the next annual mandate.
Separate responsibilities across the cycle.
Governance
The mandate, mission admission, gate decisions and publication authorisation; see programme governance.
Technical office
Mission scoping, qualification, the Core build, exercise control and evidence capture; see GCRI's annual programme cycle.
Finance readiness
The Global Risks Alliance (GRA) runs the finance and insurance readiness track, never an approval or a transaction.
Terms used on this page.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Stage gate | A review point at which a project must show set evidence before moving to the next phase. |
| Simulation exercise | A practice, training or evaluation activity in which an emergency is described or simulated and participants respond as they would in reality, so that plans and capacities can be tested, as WHO's exercise manual describes. |
| After-action review | A structured review of what was planned, what happened and what should change, held after an exercise or real event. |
Where this page's references lead.
The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.
Questions and answers.
When does the next cycle start?
Is everything deleted on the stand-down day?
What happens if a gate is not passed?
Where does the year of preparation happen?
Around GRF.
Start with an enquiry.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.