Final Report Summary - INNFORMED (Innovation Foresight for MEDA Partners in the European Research Area) The goal of the 'Innovation foresight for MEDA partners in the European Research Area' (INNFORMED) project was to introduce two advanced soresight techniques for foresight practitioners in the Mediterranean countries, using a systematic innovation systems approach. The techniques were 'Success scenarios' and 'Roadmaps'. The approach taken was to coorganise a series of eight workshops in the four Mediterranean countries in which these techniques would be applied to current research and innovation policy challenges of the region. What remained is a record of these eight workshops in terms of the instruction manuals, process templates and other supporting documentation required for the application of these techniques by foresight practitioners. All of this documentation has been made available online, not only as a record of each pilot exercise and workshop event, but as material that can be adapted and reused in future foresight initiatives by anyone in the foresight community, and especially by those operating in the Mediterranean neighbourhood.The only barriers to exploitation are familiarity with and experience in the use of foresight as a tool for modern research and innovation policy development.The application of the success scenario technique in the context of a one-day workshop poses few problems for experienced foresight consultants or practitioners, apart from the obvious need for adequate preparation of the workshop event. The application of the road-mapping technique however is less mature and would benefit from further research. Such research could usefully focus on two main issues:- the use of road-mapping for the development of socio-economic systems such as research collaborations rather than technical systems such as new engine components.- The development of robust reusable templates for handling structural (rather than technical) issues.- The iterative use of the road-map technique starting from general high level issues to finish with more detailed, specific and actionable ones.- The development and understanding of robust methods that enable high impact results to be created in the course of a one-day workshop, as opposed to a complex 9-12 month activity.Whereas the project partners retain all ownership rights to this material and wish to be acknowledged on the occasion of reuse or adaptation by the foresight community, none of this material is intended for commercial use. All of it is available for reuse, for free, for an indefinite period of time, for all who wish to use it in their work as policy makers, strategists, researchers, trainers or educators. It may be adapted for reuse in any way, shape or form, provided that full recognition is given to the project partners and to the origin of the material in the EC funded INNFORMED project. All such acknowledgements should refer to the project website at http://www.innformed.eu or http://www.innformed.org where the original material continues to be made available.The INNFORMED project is broken down as follows:- WP1: Project management and administration- WP2 - Programme design, team building and mobilisation (Programme design workshop, mobilisation of partners and team building, and writing of a 'Success scenario' workshop manual in collaboration with the local partners).- WP3 - Programme preparation. The assembly of materials required as inputs for the 'Success scenario' workshops. This work will mainly be performed by sub-contractors in each of the four participating countries with support from the consortium. This mainly consists of background research for the 'Success scenario' workshops, as well as drivers analysis.- WP4 - Scenario workshops to be carried out in each of the four MEDA countries.- WP5 Dissemination. Website and mailing list, as well as a regional workshop. The main instruments for dissemination have been as follows:- The eight pilot foresight workshops held in the period June to July 2008.- The website http://www.innformed.eu which continues to be hosted by CKA. It has several hundred hits per day. It contains all publishable results of the project including more than 150 documents for re-use based on two preparatory events and 8 pilot foresight exercises and their associated 8 success scenario workshops.- The MOCO meetings. Since 2007 these have been prepared with the help of the INCO funded MIRA project Related documents Final Report - INNFORMED (Innovation Foresight for MEDA Partners in the European Research Area)
