The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) is designed to facilitate continental-scale ecological research over a 30 year time period, providing systematic measurements, flexible operation, and research capability needed to assess long-term biosphere change and vastly expand our knowledge of regional and continental scale ecology. Some NEON sites are nearing completion and have begun operations; many more sites will be completed during the coming year. Provisional NEON data and airborne observations, along with protocols and documentation, are now available on the NEON Data Portal. In addition, NEON-collected specimens and collections are available and can be requested for research purposes. Through a number of funding mechanisms, the NSF is fostering research that makes use of NEON right now by enabling research teams to coordinate their efforts and to address specific questions. Here we bring together a broad range of ecologists involved in these activities to describe what they are doing, share their experiences with each other and the wider community and discuss future plans for using NEON. The aims of this session are to: • Demonstrate the availability and broad use of a representative and scientifically useful suite of NEON data, encompassing ground-based and airborne observations, to the community. • Report on workshops that will bring together members of the ecological community for the purpose of defining important scientific questions and initiating specific analyses or synthesis of NEON data. • Stimulate interest and excitement about current and upcoming ways that NEON is being used that can be built upon in future proposals.