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The European Commission’s

science and knowledge service

Joint Research Centre

www.jrc.ec.europa.eu

Increasing the

effectiveness of

RIS3 implementation

through

university-to-industry

interactions

Mark BODEN, EC Joint Research Centre,

Ninetta Chaniotou, Kainuun Etu Oy, et al.

UIIN Conference, Dublin, 8 June 2017

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Two Teams:

Lagging Regions: Mark Boden, Karel Haegeman, Elisabetta Marinelli, Marina Ranga, Patrice Dos Santos European Commission Joint Research Centre http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/ris3-in-lagging-regions BRIDGES: Charisios Achillas, Thomas Bartzanas (1), Ninetta Chaniotou (2), Christine Chang, Ari Lainevuo, Elina Lomperi (3), Panayiotis Ptochoulis and all project partner regions (5). www.interregeurope.eu/bridges/ (1) Centre for Research & Technology-Hellas/Institute for Research & Technology-Thessaly, EL. (2) Kainuun Etu Oy, FI (3) Regional Council of Helsinkl-Uusimaa, FI (4) ANKO, Regional Development Ganecy, Western Macedonia,EL (5) Regional Council of Kainuu, FI, Lubelskie Voivodeship, PL, ANKO,El, SVDC, SI, PBN, HU

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Overview

• Role of university-industry partnerships and their

implementation in different EU regions

• Implications for implementation of Research and

Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation

• Comparison of two ongoing projects with common

aims: BRIDGES & Lagging Regions

• Differing perspectives, methodologies and partner regions

• Contributions to academic and policy debates on RIS3 and

university-industry interactions.

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Background

• National and Regional RIS3 underpin allocation of

the ESIF 2014-2020

• Highly heterogeneous ability of EU regions to

develop appropriate strategies and effectively

translate them into economic growth

• Less developed regions, where growth is slow or

at low levels, receive the majority of the ESIF.

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Less Developed Regions: Policy issues

Slow and limited growth – despite

investment

Lack of understanding lack of effective actions to identify,

understand, address issues

Low growth regions - GDP/capita below EU average and did not converge to EU average post-crisis (Greece,

Italy, Spain, Portugal)

Less developed regions - GDP/capita 50% of EU

average (Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania)

Policy issues and

definitions

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Obstacles &

Challenges

• Skilled human capital

• Entrepreneurial culture

• Absorptive capacity

• Sustained engagement of quadruple helix of

innovation stakeholders, particularly in industry

and academia

• Capacity of micro-enterprises to dedicate

resources to research and innovation

• High dependence on regional innovation

ecosystem

• Tactical at the expense of strategic and

operational priorities for RIS3 implementation

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Role & Impact

of RIS3

• Enhance SME engagement in regional ecosystem

• Increase innovation potential

• Improved access to financial and human resources

• Increase focus on areas of strength → effective

Entrepreneurial Discovery Process (EDP)

• More competitive/specialised production may need

radical developments → "radical diversification"

• Understanding key role of university industry links

in effective local ecosystem

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BRIDGES

• INTERREG EUROPE • Instrument for implementation of cohesion policy → exchange

of good practice experience among EU partners

• Aims - between advanced and less advanced regions • Break vicious circle of regional lock-ins, dominant in less

advanced regions, restricting RIS3 impact

• Address knowledge asymmetries between innovation

• Bridge awareness, methodological and resources gaps

• Improving RIS3 implementation in 6 regions: • 1 innovation leader & 5 moderate/modest innovators

• Bio-based industries as RIS3 priorities

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BRIDGES (ii)

• RIS3 is about innovation-based growth in regions • Innovation leader regions have relatedness, embeddedness,

and critical mass

• Other regions lack one or more

• Two Hypotheses

• Less advanced regions can adopt advanced processes & seek

knowledge where it exists, if there is absorptiveness capacity

• More advanced regions can benefit from new innovation

partnerships by diffusing research & innovation solutions,

leading to more income and possible new fields of research

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BRIDGES

Methodology

• Innovation absorptiveness capacity maps • identify innovation performing industries and businesses

• research opportunities from innovation leader region for

potential innovation partnerships

• Good practice exchange and transfer • build capacity coherently

• Regional stakeholder groups • regional and interregional policy learning

• Interregional working groups • strengthen the good practice transfer and potential

interregional cooperation

• Action plans • formulated, peer reviewed, and endorsed by regional

policy makers, monitored & evaluated

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• Knowledge Spillover function • Space of 6 regional innovation systems (1+5)

• Bio-based sub-sectors with absorptive capacity for innovation

• Innovation leader - proven potential of university-industry

interactions

• Key parameters: base of expertise (innovation

infrastructures); university-industry interactions; and critical

mass issues → inter-regional complementarity

• Focus on interactions leading to: • adding value to existing or revealed strengths (specialisation)

• diversification from existing strengths into technologically

related new ones

• creation of new industries (radical diversification)

BRIDGES

Methodology (ii)

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Bridges

Outcomes

• Good Practice Themes • Industry-led centres of competence, as RIS3

implementation infrastructures

• Business innovation partnerships

• Leveraging of funds and interregional partnerships

(multilevel synergies)

• RIS3 Impacts • concrete investment plans for businesses based on

university/industry partnerships + improved ESIF criteria

• policy impacts related to investment plans in terms of

ESIF (and other) funding criteria, ensuring eligibility of

university/industry exchanges/partnerships

• engagement of regions in funding for interregional

cooperations

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Findings from the innovation maps

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Bridges: towards

the Action Plans • Content: select 1-3 improvement issues,

recommendations of advisory team and bilateral

discussions

• Legitimation: through multiple bilateral meetings

and regional stakeholder group exchanges to confirm

improvement issues

• The bridge (-s): based on market & innovation

chain structural, quantitative and qualitative gaps,

explicit co-operations with national (if relevant) and

interregional actors

• Form of action plans: multi-actor partnerships with

eligibility for non-regional participants (based on

identified gaps)

• Funding to the front: Article 70 and what it means.

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RIS3 in

Lagging Regions

Aims

To support the refinement and implementation of the RIS3 of selected EU

regions

To generate lessons and a model for other regions

To serve as a test-bed for theories on Smart Specialisation –

understanding of RIS3

Background

Extends activities in Eastern Macedonia

and Thrace

Implements two European Parliament

"Preparatory Actions"

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Support to RIS3 implementation in 9 Lagging Regions

Centro

Extremadura

Észak-Alföld Nord-Vest

Nord-Est

Severen Tsentralen

Eastern Macedonia and Thrace

Puglia

Warminsko Masurskie

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Objectives

• to develop and provide appropriate and specific support to

selected regions in RIS3 implementation, building on EDP

• to develop and enhance linkages between RIS3 at regional and

national levels (particularly in Romania)

• to develop and implement horizontal approaches to key issues

in the growth and governance of RIS3

• to develop and disseminate lessons and a tool box for other EU

regions

• to improve understanding of slow and limited growth in EU

regions and links to macro-economic framework conditions

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Implementation

• Identify and share common challenges

and solutions

• Less Developed Regions initiative, Bridges, Beyond EDP Vanguard Initiative, S3P, S2E etc.

• approach tailored to needs and problems

identified by stakeholders

• JRC, DG REGIO, other DGs, regional and national authorities

Partnership Flexibility

Trans-national

dimension

Synergies with other activities

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Objectives Tools

Idea generation, trust building and

support cooperation

EDP focus group methodology

Open up to wider (online) communities Online stakeholder engagement

Address brain drain, build skills Mobility Working Group

Increase coordination between national

and regional levels

Methodology PDL1

Widen funding sources to draw on for

idea implementation

Methodology PDL2

Online RDI Funding Guide

Case descriptions

Optimise RIS3 governance structure Governance working group

Support ongoing stakeholder

engagement

Stakeholder round table discussions

Identification of barriers and possible

solutions Tailored peer review events

Mutual learning Board of critical friends

Support international cooperation Collaboration spotting tool

Toolbox

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Entrepreneurial Discovery Process Focus Group Cluj – May 2016

Cosmetics and food supplements based on natural resources

Stakeholder representation (Quadruple helix): 73 participants

38 business ideas generated

Examples of business ideas:

• Database of plant resources - Edible plants consumed traditionally for anti-ageing / healthy ageing purposes

• Anti-acne products - testing efficiency locally

• Transylvanian Cosmatopea Cluster

• Locally branded bio products

• In-house technology for determination of own natural cosmetic products' validity date and for quality control of ingredients and final product

• Smart packaging: with anti-microbe protection or smart labels changing colour if expired

• Cosmetics and (para)pharma: From harmful to beneficial cosmetics

Key role for international stakeholders

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Horizontal issues: Working Groups

Governance

• long-term sustainability of the EDP process

• relationship between national and regional levels

• synergies between structural funds and other resources

Monitoring and evaluation

• Working Group – experts and Mutual learning

• Development of MOOC

Transnational cooperation

• Cooperation within EU and with neighbourhood countries

• Thematic cooperation across EU (Value chains/KICs/…)

• Methodological cooperation/mutual learning

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Outcomes

Specific support • e.g. instruments • e.g. synergies between funds

• support to continuous EDP

Horizontal support • e.g. Monitoring, governance

• e.g. Cross-regional exchange

Dissemination •Codification of methodologies

•Publications

•Other media

Advancing understanding of RIS3

implementation

RIS3 - an entry point to broader issues

Improve understanding of slow and limited

growth

Regions Commission/EP

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Lagging Regions

Impacts

• Development of necessary constructive working

collaborations with partner regions → based on

mutual understanding and trust

• Concrete steps in refining RIS3 priorities through

targeted support to EDP related activities

• Creating/ supporting momentum for change, such

as in sustained efforts for EDP and its impacts

• Enhanced understanding of RIS3 and complexity

of implementation challenges

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Lagging Regions

Impacts & Challenges

• Engagement of stakeholder communities relevant

to specific priority areas • Emphasis on bringing together research and industrial

communities and encouraging interaction through a

structured and inclusive approach

• Sustaining interactions and necessary changes in

stakeholder behaviour over time

• Solid basis for further work with partner regions as

well as for dissemination of the wider lessons.

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Complementarities

• Two projects: shared aims - different approaches • Basis for identifying key complementarities and potential

for future collaboration –compare processes and results

• A joint working group/thematic workshops

• Central role of stakeholder engagement in RIS3 • Focus on research and industrial communities

• Guided/structured approaches to engagement

• Combining analysis with practical tools • Interregional technological connectivity vs. EDP

• Bring together: systematic innovation maps to shape and

further structure stakeholder interaction

• Committed and varied groups of partner regions • Extended base of experience and circumstances

• Support mutual learning, wider dissemination, interactions

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http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu