Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ERA_FABRIC (Framing And Bridging Regional research and Innovation ecosystems Capacities for a renewed ERA)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2023-01-01 al 2023-12-31
ERA_FABRIC is a pilot project launched at the beginning of 2023 with the aim to accelerate the recovery and increase the competitiveness of European territories, through the development of new policies, measures and tools to exploit the potential of research excellence and foster interactions and collaboration within and among the knowledge ecosystems of the different European regions.
Coordinated by ART-ER with the contribution of 11 partners distributed across 9 European countries, the project aims to test the concept of "ERA HUB" (Hub of the European Research Area), arriving at the definition of a new model that promotes an open and inclusive European research and innovation system that favours the exploitation of research results, the transfer of knowledge and technologies, the circulation of talents, the development of careers and the improvement of the capabilities of research actors and businesses.
The project includes a thematic focus within the European Commission political priority of the green sustainable transition, conceived as a growth strategy that affects all aspects of living and working, producing and consuming, contributing to making businesses more innovative and creating new jobs quality. Sustainable production, biobased circular economy and clean renewable energy will be the areas of interest of the pilot test phase which will take the following three dimensions into consideration:
1) ERA Hubs as Knowledge Ecosystems: fostering the dynamic interaction of R&D and innovation actors at regional and multiregional levels, taking into account the different knowledge and cultural contexts and the alignment of research foci and industrial needs;
2) ERA Hubs as Multi Stakeholder Platforms: bringing together the representatives of the various involved interest groups in a seamless and uninterrupted discussion and deliberation on strategic priorities, actions and results evaluation;
3) ERA Hubs as a Policy Co Creation Toolbox: a transformative set of measures and tools operating in a “middle ground” needing to be configured as a distinct space from both the EU and the Member States/Regional levels, historically presided over by “ad hoc” sets of instruments (e.g. Framework Programmes for R&I, Structural and Investment Funds, Interregional and Cross Border Cooperation Programmes).
Coordinated by ART-ER with the contribution of 11 partners distributed across 9 European countries, the project aims to test the concept of "ERA HUB" (Hub of the European Research Area), arriving at the definition of a new model that promotes an open and inclusive European research and innovation system that favours the exploitation of research results, the transfer of knowledge and technologies, the circulation of talents, the development of careers and the improvement of the capabilities of research actors and businesses.
The project includes a thematic focus within the European Commission political priority of the green sustainable transition, conceived as a growth strategy that affects all aspects of living and working, producing and consuming, contributing to making businesses more innovative and creating new jobs quality. Sustainable production, biobased circular economy and clean renewable energy will be the areas of interest of the pilot test phase which will take the following three dimensions into consideration:
1) ERA Hubs as Knowledge Ecosystems: fostering the dynamic interaction of R&D and innovation actors at regional and multiregional levels, taking into account the different knowledge and cultural contexts and the alignment of research foci and industrial needs;
2) ERA Hubs as Multi Stakeholder Platforms: bringing together the representatives of the various involved interest groups in a seamless and uninterrupted discussion and deliberation on strategic priorities, actions and results evaluation;
3) ERA Hubs as a Policy Co Creation Toolbox: a transformative set of measures and tools operating in a “middle ground” needing to be configured as a distinct space from both the EU and the Member States/Regional levels, historically presided over by “ad hoc” sets of instruments (e.g. Framework Programmes for R&I, Structural and Investment Funds, Interregional and Cross Border Cooperation Programmes).
During the first year of activity partners started with the analysis of existing theories and evidence concerning the role of knowledge and information flows exchanged by regional stakeholders in supporting value production. The research work had the aim of summarising in a non-technical language the state of the art of the knowledge about ERA Hubs, what is the economic, social, environmental and governance background that created the need for a new tool to promote transformative innovation, which are its objectives, role and functioning leading towards a working definition of ERA Hub which can be understood, accepted and implemented by the different stakeholders across European Knowledge ecosystems.
As a result in a nutshell “ERA Hubs are mission-focused, multi-stakeholder research and innovation collaborative ecosystems based in specific territories, aiming at developing better governance and increased competitiveness for more efficiently addressing common societal challenges”.
Starting from this assumption, the project then investigated the concept of ERA Hub as Multi Stakeholders Platform, which involves the collaboration of representatives from various interest groups to address shared challenges, identify opportunities, devise policy actions and advocate for effective strategies. For this purpose in each partner’s territorial context regional stakeholders and communities were mapped as well as current policy strategies and instruments, providing needs and gap analyses via the consultation of regional working groups belonging to the quadruple helix scenario.
The following step was the analysis of existing ERA-Hubs-like ecosystems aiming to design a model based on recurring characteristics of the effective experiences operating on the field across the European regions. 26 case studies have been identified and 15 out of these were selected for further analysis (5 for each of the thematic domains addressed by the project). The elaboration and discussion of the data collected via desk research and interviews produced a first list of characteristics to be taken into consideration as peculiar to knowledge-based innovation ecosystems.
Finally the last part of the year was devoted to setting up an open EU-wide stakeholder survey complementing the conclusions achieved with the previous analysis.
As a result in a nutshell “ERA Hubs are mission-focused, multi-stakeholder research and innovation collaborative ecosystems based in specific territories, aiming at developing better governance and increased competitiveness for more efficiently addressing common societal challenges”.
Starting from this assumption, the project then investigated the concept of ERA Hub as Multi Stakeholders Platform, which involves the collaboration of representatives from various interest groups to address shared challenges, identify opportunities, devise policy actions and advocate for effective strategies. For this purpose in each partner’s territorial context regional stakeholders and communities were mapped as well as current policy strategies and instruments, providing needs and gap analyses via the consultation of regional working groups belonging to the quadruple helix scenario.
The following step was the analysis of existing ERA-Hubs-like ecosystems aiming to design a model based on recurring characteristics of the effective experiences operating on the field across the European regions. 26 case studies have been identified and 15 out of these were selected for further analysis (5 for each of the thematic domains addressed by the project). The elaboration and discussion of the data collected via desk research and interviews produced a first list of characteristics to be taken into consideration as peculiar to knowledge-based innovation ecosystems.
Finally the last part of the year was devoted to setting up an open EU-wide stakeholder survey complementing the conclusions achieved with the previous analysis.
ERA Hubs characteristics emerging from the first analysis carried out within the project - which will be further investigated in the second part of the project - are: territorial vocation, multi-level governance process, explicit systemic interactions among their actors, strong orientation towards innovation processes, specific and differentiated roles of the actors involved, balanced (equilibrium between private and public actors, private and public aims, and private and public financial sources, common focus on environmental sustainability of the innovation processes, intense mobilisation of public and private stakeholders around shared objectives and common strategies of economic and industrial development, clear horizontal integration through widespread connections towards other knowledge ecosystems, independently of regional or national borders.