Preparatory action for setting up joint programmes among innovation ecosystems actors

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• Open dialogue, prepare the ground and facilitate the agreement among Member States, Associated Countries, and/or their regions, in cooperation with the private sector and research and innovation actors, towards more dynamic, inclusive, gender diverse, and connected innovation ecosystems, via co-planning, co-implementation, and co-investments around areas outlined in the New European Innovation Agenda^[1];
• Prepare joint long-term programmes and action plans fostering collaboration, common innovation-support activities, and the creation of common knowledge assets among EU, national, regional and/or local level innovation ecosystems, enhancing synergies and complementarities of their programmes and encouraging the alignment of their innovation policies and related policies impacting innovation in line with the new European Innovation Agenda, establishing, if relevant, links to the new Partnerships for Regional Innovation^[2];
• Ensure the inclusion of all key innovation players from across the quadruple helix^[3], and all EU territories, including rural areas;
• Foster synergies with other EU funding programmes, including Cohesion Policy instruments, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, and any other funding leverages, including national or regional public funds, and private funds, to complement Horizon Europe support for innovation ecosystems.

Target group(s): National, regional and/or local authorities together with private actors, including state-owned enterprises, and research and innovation actors or networks, e.g. the European Institute of Innovation and the Technology Knowledge and Innovation Communities (EIT KICs).

The topic will allow national, regional and/or local authorities in charge of innovation policies and programmes from Member States, Associated Countries and/or their regions, in cooperation with research and innovation actors, to prepare joint multi-annual programmes of activities and action plans with the aim of strengthening the performance and capacity of their innovation ecosystems, their efficient interconnection and their alignment towards EU-level priorities, in line with the New European Innovation Agenda^[4], to jointly tackle challenges at EU, national, regional, and local level.

The topic will allow applicants to prepare and agree on a common programme of activities and action plans. The applicants are encouraged to consider a project duration of up to 12 months and in their proposals they should:

• Identify areas and activities of cooperation to enhance the coordination and directionality of their research and innovation investments and policies and improve the efficiency and performance of the EU's innovation ecosystems, fostering their interconnection and scale-up while tackling EU, national, regional and/or local challenges:
  • The proposals may focus on a thematic/technological area of common interest in line with one or more EU priorities, including climate action, Green Deal and digital transformation, including those specified in the New European Innovation Agenda;
  • The proposals should pay attention to gender equality objectives^[5].
• Plan their long-term commitment: the applicants are encouraged to consider planning commitments of at least three (3) years towards engaging in the joint cooperation activities set out in the frame of the projects;
• Explain the potential for growth and competitiveness foreseen in the targeted sector and/or expected impact on relevant EU challenges through the proposed cooperation;
• Ensure inclusiveness and diversity with the involvement of all innovation actors, including individual inventors, enhance complementarities of EU, national and/or regional funds and programmes, and encourage the alignment of their innovation agendas;
• Provide a justification on the need for those joint activities that should be scalable at European level and demonstrate their strong EU added value;
• Explain its links to the New European Innovation Agenda and how the project will contribute to its objectives;
• Explain how the proposed action plans complement and reinforce their national and/or regional and/or local innovation plans, policies and/or strategies in synergy, including with their smart specialisation strategies, and if applicable their Partnerships for Regional Innovation and start-up villages^[6];
• Explain the process that they plan to follow, with an open, clear, realistic, and impact-oriented approach, including relevant guidance mechanisms and tools;
• Present what common knowledge assets are expected from the proposed action plans, and the benefit of the intended beneficiaries of the plans;
• Present the targeted milestones to be achieved.

The proposals for the development of a joint long-term action plan may include the following two (2) phases:

• A first phase to foster close dialogue among key stakeholders for strategy/partnership building, mapping, and analysis of existing national and/or regional and/or local innovation agendas/strategies/policies/plans/activities, including local pockets of excellence/innovation hubs, the relevant active/inactive actors (including financial actors, citizens, and individual innovators) and ways to motivate their inclusion, identification of areas of competitive advantage for sustainable economic growth, mapping of gaps, needs, and opportunities. Any activities are encouraged to consider existing tools, knowledge and expertise, including the methodology and governance tools tested and developed in the context of the Partnerships for Regional Innovation initiative or the knowledge and expertise of the EIT KICs with place-based approaches to innovation. Responsible Research and Innovation expertise may also be relevant in this regard^[7];
• A second phase dedicated to the concretising, setting up, and finalising the joint action plan(s) and allocation of the activities over a period of the proposed action plans.

The implementation of the proposed action plans is not part of this topic. For the implementation part, the successful proposals under the topic may seek further financial support from other EU programmes, including Horizon Europe and/or other public and/or private programmes.

[1]A New European Innovation Agenda, COM(2022) 332 final.

[2]More information under "Partnerships for Regional Innovation."

[3]A model of cooperation between industry, academia, civil society and public authorities, with a strong emphasis on citizens and their needs.

[4]A New European Innovation Agenda, COM(2022) 332 final.

[5]See for instance the Horizon Europe regulation for horizontal gender equality principles, the ERA policy agenda 2022-2024, and the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025.

[6]More information under "Start-up villages: a commitment to a long-term vision for rural areas."

[7]E.g. projects supported under SwafS-14-2018-2019-2020 in Horizon 2020.