On Thursday 19th February 2015 the Foundation marked the completion of its third Train-the-Trainers programme in Cluster Excellence Management in style by holding a Cluster Excellence Day in Brussels. The Cluster Excellence Day was addressed to those wishing to learn more about the European Cluster Excellence Programme as well as the training activities of the Foundation.
Many delegates joined the current cohort of the training programme.
Training programme showcase
During the event in Brussels a number of participating teams presented their experience of undertaking the training and showcased their projects in reinforcing the competitiveness of their regional and national clusters. Videos of the showcases are available below.
Cluster based economic development: the experts viewpoint
There was extensive opportunity to find out the details of the policy frameworks and instruments that support cluster economic development from Olivier Brunet, DG Research and Innovation, Katja Reppel, DG Regional and Urban Policy, Germana Ricciardi, DG GROW as well as Nicolas Singer of the recently launched INTERREG Europe programme.
The afternoon session saw Emiliano Duch of World Bank provide a global examination of cluster based economic development and Kirsi Ekroth-Manssila, Head of Unit, SMEs: Clusters & Emerging Industries DG GROW, outlined the latest developments in EU Cluster Policy. Thomas Lämmer-Gamp, of European Secretariat for Cluster Analysis (ESCA), set out the role of cluster organisations and their quality standards within a cluster based economic development policy framework.
During the day participants, guests and speakers exchanged and discussed specific aspects of the work of the Foundation, and of current state-of-the-art in economic development among European Regions.
Presentations and videos of the speakers can be accessed by clicking on the following links:
Projects developed through the Cluster Excellence Programme were showcased, highlighting the key learning points and explaining how the methodology transformed their approach to economic development:
- North West Romania & Mazovia Region (Poland) on Cosmetics. You may download the presentation on cosmetics clicking on the link.
- Trinidad & Tobago on Cocoa. You may download the presentation on cocoa clicking on the link.
- Malta on Aviation services. You may download the presentation on aviation services clicking on the link.
Please scroll down the page to watch corresponding videos of the showcases.
EU policy instruments for cluster development – Views from different angles
- From FP7 to Horizon 2020 by Olivier Brunet, DG Research and Innovation.
- Smart Specialisation Strategies by Katja Reppel, DG Regional Policy.
- EU Policy Instruments by Nicolas Singer, INTERREG Europe.
- Role of Cluster Organisations and their Quality Standards by Thomas Lämmer-Gamp, ESCA.
- The Global Take on Cluster Development by Emiliano Duch, The World Bank Group.
- Overview of Latest Developments in EU Cluster Policy by Kirsi Ekroth-Manssila, Head of Unit, SMEs: Clusters & Emerging Industries DG GROW.
