MED-SPRING project organized a "Training on Innovation", scheduled from 25th to 27th November 2015. The Training on Innovation was organized in the frame of the EU funded project MED-SPRING in synergy with the capacity building initiatives of the EU funded project MERID, to support networking and cooperation in R&I in the Euro-Mediterranean area.
Research and Innovation are among the main assets for increasing countries' competitiveness while addressing specific societal challenges. Cooperation activities and EU funded projects can engage European and Mediterranean partner countries in a joint effort to develop specific subject areas targeted by innovation. In this perspective, the overall objectives of the training are:
- strengthen participants’ capacities in R&I cooperation through the improvement of knowledge and skills required to promote innovation at institutional level;
- implement research and innovation strategies at local and national level,
- networking for building R&I international partnerships and identifying funding opportunities.
The training was addressed to officials and experts from the following countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, Iran and Iraq. Two young researchers funded through the EU funded MEDMOBIL project also joined the training. Participants represented governmental organisations, research institutions and business clusters. Please find the event agenda.
AGENDA
25 November 2015
9:00 - 9:45 - Welcome Addresses
- CNR - M. Rossano
- EMUNI - D. Hribar
- DLR - R. Hermann
9:45 - 13:00 - Session 1 - Setting the scenario: This session approached the concept of innovation system focusing on some of its elements and considering it as a sustainable development approach.
9:45 - 10:30 - Innovation system and sustainability (definition of sustainability and types of innovation) - R. Chelli, UNIMED - Italy
10:30 - 11:00 - Collaborative Research and innovation: a New Model for the Future - B. Angelini, CNR-TTO - Italy
11:30 - 12:30 - Assessing and managing innovation and innovative ideas in the Mediterranean: criteria, indicators, logic of intervention - Mohab Anis, INNOVETY (Egypt) and Abdurrahman Turk, TUBITAK (Turkey).
12:30 - 13:00 - Funding innovation in micro-economies - I. Gauci Borda, MCST - Malta
14:30 - 18:00 - Session 2 - Business/market and innovation: The session dealed with issues such as new markets, technology transfer, Intellectual Property Rights, risk management, building public/private partnerships, concepts of incubators, spin-off, etc. To this aim, examples of R&I best practices were provided.
14:30 - 15:00 - Innovation & TT in the Euro-Mediterranean area: some perspectives - F.S. Donadio, CNR - Office for European and International Relations (UREI) - IPR Task Force - Italy
15:00 - 15:30 - Innovative sustainability solutions: facilitating implementation & market dissemination of R&D project results - A.Suthhof, DLR - Germany
15:30 - 16:00 - My experience as an Academic Start-upper - A. Sannino, Gelesis Inc. - Boston Mass - USA
16:00 - 16:30 - End-of-life materials: from research to application - M. Malinconico - CNR - IPT - Italy
17:00 - 18:00 - Discussion on transferable elements as well as modes of adaptation of innovation approaches to MENA countries - Facilitator: Z. El-Sadr, MHESR - Egypt
26 November 2015
9:00 - 13:00 - Session 3 - From concept to implementation - During this session participants drawed lessons from the previous day presentations. EU innovation policies and funding opportunities for innovation development were presented keeping a focus on adaptation to MPCs. Some financial instruments were explored.
9:00 - 10:00 - EU innovation policies and funding - R. Chelli, UNIMED - Italy
10:00 - 11:00 - Working group: drawing lessons learnt (role of governance, ICT, IPR, funding, skills, actors, indicators). Trainees will provide an outline of the first day session - Facilitator: V. Belsanti, CIHEAM-Bari - Italy
11:30 - 13:00 - Innovation in Mediterranean countries - Latifa Boussemi, CERTE - Tunisia and Rasha Tantawi, TIEC - Egypt
14:30 - 18:00 - Session 4: Presentation/Discussion: How to gear public research support towards innovation? Centered around the 'funding system', i.e. on public policy and its strategies and instruments to support research and innovation processes, this session consisted of a presentation of about 30 minutes inviting the other innovation stakeholder groups (researchers, managers of research institutions, business players) to embark on a discussion on how the innovation systems of MPC could be optimised towards this direction - R. Hermann, A. Suthhof, DLR - Germany.
27 November 2015
9:00 - 12:30 - Session 5: Proposal drafting - Presentation of a call - The session provided some inputs to build partnership and draft projects proposals dealing with Innovation.
9:00 - 10:00 - Technological, Economic and Ethical Issues in R&I - D. Meinero, I&D Consulting - Belgium
10:00 - 11:00 - Proposal drafting - Presentation of a call - L. Piccinetti, EfB - UK
11:30 - 12:30 - Proposal drafting - Presentation of a call - L. Piccinetti, EfB - UK
12:30 - 13:00 - Session 6: Conclusions and follow up - Presentation of some results, discussion and concluding remarks - M. Rossano, CNR-UREI - Italy
