This is 15th workshop of the successful “Clusters meet Regions” cycle. Organised since 2022 in different EU regions, these events bring together clusters and policymakers of the EU, at national, regional, and local level to learn from each other how to better use clusters to strengthen industrial ecosystems, serve national/regional economic development and liaise with other regions facing similar transition challenges.
The European Cluster Collaboration Platform, on behalf of the European Commission, and in partnership with AFIL – Lombardy Intelligent Factory Association and the Lombardy Regional Authority, will be jointly organising the next ‘Clusters Meet Regions’ event in Milan, Italy, on the 26 and 27 March. The event will focus on the Twin Transition and will address three main objectives:
- to analyse the policy effectiveness of central-level strategies and their implementation at the local level.
- to focus on the best practices and models by Italian and European regions, including supportive initiatives for the business, industry and research ecosystem, and provide some examples of their impact.
- to provide an opportunity to build networks and projects among participants.
Since 2012, the Lombardy Region has coordinated nine Technology Clusters which cover the main strategic areas identified at the national policy level. These clusters are in Aerospace, Agrifood, Green Chemistry, Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, Mobility, Life Sciences, Technologies for Smart Communities and Technologies for living spaces.
The process of identification of and support to Clusters in Lombardy was carried out in line with national guidelines within the Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) and the European Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.
Research and Innovation are a pillar of the sustainable growth of Lombardy. To strengthen this pillar, a solid co-design process with clusters has been established for the development of priorities for each S3 Innovation Ecosystem, fully aligned with the European policies and regional, national and European funding.
Thanks to Clusters and other regional stakeholders, Lombardy is capable of meeting upstream the needs of industrial and innovation ecosystems by:
- identifying the correct technological priorities to support,
matching social and environmental goals, - transforming the industrial system into the future essential enabler of the real implementation of sustainability.
Last, but not least, the Technology Clusters contribute concretely to the implementation of innovative processes to enhance the ecosystems’ competitiveness through:
- fostering collaboration between scientific and industrial actors in Clusters;
- facilitating the inclusion of small businesses (micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups) in the Clusters’ communities;
- supporting the Lombardy Region in the process of defining and updating the Research and Innovation Strategy (R&I);
- mapping the skills and promoting excellence of the region in creating and developing new value chains;
- facilitating the creation of consortia to access available resources and exploiting the results of R&I activities in the region.
