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The LocoMotive Project: outputs and main results

LOCOMOTIVE project aimed at providinf regional policy makers with a deep analysis on the R&D investment policies of large private companies in certain regions, comparing them with trends of other European regions.

The main results were a study and associated dissemination activities on current R&D investment policies of selected major companies and their link-effect to regional strategies. In addition, there were developed some proposals for future regional and European Commission activities in better supporting R&D localisation in Europe. The study itself was used as a mean of discussion among R&D managers, regional policy makers, public administrators and public funded researchers.
LOCOMOTIVE addressed a missing link in the current Regions of Knowledge (RoK) and other DG Research policies for regional development in that it tried to build a bridge to large private R&D investment.

Link to policy makers

A key objective was to bridge “big” industries and regional policy maker. LOCOMOTIVE did not intend to develop policies, but to assist policy makers in better understand the strategies of large companies concerning R&D localisation. The project wanted to find out how to improve cluster conditions or what might mean establishing close ties with universities, etc.
The involvement of policy makers was both direct and indirect: many of the participating organisations were involved in regional development issues on behalf of public authorities or regional Governments. In addition, the goal of the project was to present the lessons learned to policy makers. By having a wider spectrum of results to draw from, and the possibility to make inter-regional comparisons some of the tendency to base policy on “anecdotal information” can be avoided

Developed Recomendations

The LOCOMOTIVE project condensed its findings into a final report giving recommendations on the regional aspects of R&D location. As can be expected in the case of such a cooperative project, collaboration highlighted many interesting and relevant dimensions and concerns (regional, European, sectoral, academic vs policy oriented, private vs public, etc.) and some of them are clearly illustrated in this final report.

PRO INNO Europe and Europe INNOVA calls for proposals
Calls for proposals for the next generation of PRO INNO Europe and Europe INNOVA projects have been lunched.

PRO INNO Europe call was published on 12 November 2008, and concerns the setting up of INNO-Nets and INNO-Actions with a view to fostering transnational cooperation on support for innovation. The deadline for submission of proposals is 12 February 2009.

PRO INNO Europe initiative contributes to closer cooperation between innovation policy makers and public support organisations at different levels with a view to contributing to the development of new and better innovation policies in Europe.

The Europe INNOVA call was published on 11 November 2008 and concerns the setting-up of Innovation Platforms for transnational cluster cooperation, knowledge-intensive services, eco-innovation and the promotion of novel tools and service concepts for innovation support. The deadline for submission of proposals is 11 February 2009.

Europe INNOVA initiative is oriented towards the development and testing of new practical innovation support services for SMEs, notably start-ups, delivered in the field by platforms of partnerships between European innovation professionals in view of their wider application. The overall objective is to accelerate innovation processes and thus to facilitate the commercialisation of innovative products and services.

The calls documents can be downloaded here, where any updates will also be published. A partner search tool is available here.

An information day for both calls is planned for 17 December 2008 in Brussels. Please be aware that you must pre-register for the information day by filling in the registration form available with the call documents.

TRANS REG NCP: the European Network for research-driven-clusters
The network supports research organizations, enterprises and regional authorities to utilize the opportunities offered by the 7th FP.

TRANS REG NCP, the trans-national network of the National Contact Points for the FP7 "Regions of Knowledge" programme, supports all research organizations, enterprises and regional authorities to utilize the opportunities offered by the 7th Framework Programme for the development of research-driven-clusters.

The "Regions of knowledge" programme aims to strengthen the research potential of European regions, by encouraging and supporting the development, across Europe, of regional "research-driven clusters", associating universities, research centres, enterprises and regional authorities. The actions undertaken in this area will enable European regions to increase their investments and develop their commitment in research which contributes to economic development.

The Network consists of 11 partners form the EU Member States and Associated countries, and is co-funded by the EU Commission under FP7 Specific Programme Capacities. It provides high quality services, specialized on the FP7 programme “Regions of Knowledge”: information on the open calls, tips for successful participation, dissemination of best practices from experienced practitioners to newcomers, assistance in finding appropriate research and development partners, information on complementary funding for regional development.

The website of the Network (www.transregncp.eu) provides access to information on research-driven-clusters policies and initiatives, open calls and past funded project, news, events, useful links, etc.

Support of innovation and research in Catalonia
A new National Agreement for Research and Innovation has been signed.

The National Agreement on Research and Innovation (PNRI), led by the Honorable Mr. Josep Huguet, Minister for Innovation, Universities and Enterprise of the Government of Catalonia, is envisioned as a long-term and far-reaching agreement. With a broad consensus among social, economic and political agents, it is designed to shape a competitive country in a knowledge society founded on progress to be created by talent, science, technology and innovation.

Actually, the PNRI is an agreement that has been signed and accepted by the Government of Catalonia together with the political parties with parliamentary representation, the Catalan Universities, companies and company associations and some trade unions, being all of them the most relevant economical and social agents in terms of R&D and Innovation in Catalonia.

The PNRI will set the strategy, challenges and objectives and will fix the agents’ commitment with the aim to develop a long term synergic and joint action based on trust and cooperation.

IRE Workshop - New Generation of Regional Innovation Strategies
The Innovating Regions in Europe are meeting in Gothenburg on 24-25 November 2008 to discuss new trends in territorial innovation policy making.

The first Regional Innovation Strategy projects supported by the European Commission, which have had slightly varying names and acronyms (e.g. RTP, RIS, RITTS) started in the mid-1990s. From 1994 to 2000, more than 100 regions of former EU-15 established their innovation strategies using a common methodology. In a context of increasing global competitiveness and rapid technological and market change, many of the regions that pioneered in developing regionalised innovation strategies (particularly those who did it from 1994 to 2000), have felt the need of reformulating the original strategies and, in some cases, designing and launching new ones.

The IRE workshop ‘New Generation of Regional Innovation Strategies’ is intended for IRE member regions that developed their innovation strategies long time ago and need readapt their strategies, but also for the regions based in new EU Member Countries that have recently performed RIS projects in order to perceive how their long-term plans of action to enhance regional innovation capabilities might evolve in the future.

The event will present examples of regions that are involved in the preparation and implementation of a new innovation strategy, and will examine a number of key issues and trends related to the development of recent regional innovation strategies.

BALTIC SEA REGION: 2nd call for project applications
The 2nd call for project applications will be opened on 19 January and closed on 31 March 2009.

Further details and the application package for the 2nd call of project applications will be available at the Programme website soon.

The Lead Applicant seminars for those who will apply for the Programme funds in the next calls will be held in:

Tallinn/Estonia, 27-28 November 2008
Gdansk/Poland, 10-11 December 2008
Rostock/Germany, 4-5 February 2009

For now the registration for the seminars in Tallinn and Gdansk is opened. To register and for more information click here.

Individual project consultations:

The individual consultations will be offered by the Joint Technical Secretariat in Rostock and Riga on the following dates.

Rostock: 7, 14, 28 October & 4, 11, 18 November
Riga: 7, 9, 30 October & 6, 20 November

To register for the consultation please fill in the project idea form and send it to . The Secretariat will contact you to inform about the possible dates of consultations.

“Caribbean space” Program call for proposals
The first Call for Proposals from the INTERREG IV “Caribbean space” Program 2007 – 2013 has been lunched.

The “Caribbean Space” program, through financial assistance, is seeking proposals for activities to support regional integration of Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Martinique, Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin; and to contribute to the development of the Caribbean region.

The first call for proposals under the “Caribbean Space” program was launched in October 2008 and will remain open until 28 November 2008.

Guidelines for Applicants, as well as application forms and all suitable documents, are available online (French version).

EUREKA's Eurostars Programme - funding and support for SMEs
The next deadline for submitting proposals under the Eurostars Programme is 21 November.

EUREKA's Eurostars Programme is the first European funding and support programme specifically dedicated to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The projects under this programme can address any technological area, but must have a civilian purpose and be aimed at the development of a new product, process or service. The projects must be collaborative which means they must involve at least two participants (legal entities) from two different participating countries. In addition, the main participant must be a research-performing SME.

Thirty-one countries currently participate in the Eurostars Programme through the EUREKA network of national offices. Every country has its local contact for providing information on national funding rules of the programme.

The programme is open for funding applications on a continuous basis, with an average of two application submission deadlines each year. The next deadline for electronic submission of applications is Friday 21 November 2008 at 1700 CET.

Science, Technology and Industry Outlook 2008
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently published the report "Science, Technology and Industry Outlook 2008".

The report is a review of key trends in science, technology and innovation in OECD countries and a number of major non-member economies including Brazil, Chile, China, Israel, Russia and South Africa. Using the latest available data and indicators, the book examines topics high on the agenda of science and innovation policy makers, including science and innovation performance; trends in national science, technology and innovation policies; and practices to assess the socio-economic impacts of public research.

It also includes individual profiles of each country in relation to its national context and current policy challenges. The graphs enable countries to see some of their relative strengths and weaknesses as compared to other countries' performance.

The report can be purchased online at the OECD Online Bookshop. A brochure presenting the highlights and main findings of the 2008 edition is available for free download in English and French.

ALPINE SPACE PROGRAMME: Second call

The second call for project proposals opened on 20th October 2008. After handing in an Expression of Interest (EoI) until 21st November 2008, selected project applicants will be invited to upload their full application package directly on the website

How does it work?

The call for proposals follows a two-step application procedure. In a first step, applicants are requested to submit an Expression of Interest (EoI) based on a short form. Applicants have to describe the objectives of the project, the foreseen budget, the activities, as well as the foreseen outputs and results and the partnership. The procedure comprises a pre-selection of the submitted EoI, this pre-selection marks the end of step 1. The project owners of the pre-selected EoI are invited to enter step 2: in this second step the application form (AF) together with the Partnership Agreement (PA) have to be submitted.

Relevant documents and upload

Here you can find all relevant documents for the second call (EoI file, ToR etc.). Please note the national requirements to be taken into consideration!

Documents

Here you can upload your Expression of Interest. Please read the upload instructions carefully before you start!

Upload

Timeschedule for the second call

20th of October 2008: Publication of ToRs and opening of the call for EoI
21st of November 2008: Deadline for the EoI upload
End November 2008 - mid February 2009: Assessment of the EoI
Mid February 2009: Information from the programme on pre-selection of the project proposals
Mid February 2009 - Mid April 2009 (8 weeks): Call is open for project applications (application package including Application Form, Partnership Agreements, Declaration of observers)
Mid April 2009 - mid June 2009: Evaluation of submitted applications
Mid June 2009: Information from the programme on approval or rejection to the project proposals

Useful links

More information on the two-step application procedure

More information on existing project ideas

Last Update Thu, November 20, 2008 Legal Notice - the information on this site is subject to a disclaimer
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