Tribute to Nacho Dualde

Nacho Dualde, manager of ESCI-UPF and member of the board of trustees of the European Foundation for Cluster Excellence, passed away on 13 December. The Foundation mourns his loss and sends its condolences to his family and friends.

Nacho Dualde was 47 years old and was the father of Cinta, Abril and Mateo. He was a student of the first promotion of ESCI-UPF and after 10 years working in private enterprise, he returned to his alma mater to occupy the position of manager, a position he has held for the last thirty years.

Having a passion for higher education and economics, Nacho Dualde was instrumental in connecting the Foundation further with Barcelona's world class academic community and ecosystem.

We will remember Nacho for all of this but also for his contagious energy and customary good humour.

Supporting cluster development in Izmir, Turkey

Between June and July 2021 the Foundation is delivering a training program organized in coordination with Izmir Development Agency (IZKA) and the Association of Energy Industrialists and Businessmen (ENSİA).

It takes place within the framework of the European Commission funded programme entitled BEST For Energy (Boosting Effective and Sustainable Transformation for Energy). This initiative aims to develop a structure that will ensure implementation of strategies of development compatible with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Clusters to deliver recovery and growth in challenging times

Next October the TCI Global Conference will be back. This time in virtual mode, Covid-related restrictions oblige.

Local innovation systems - in layman's terms : clusters - have been singled-out as catalysts for the recovery of regional economies across the world. Allowing the establishment of a sustainable and evidenced-based strategic roadmap and stakeholder alignment, clusters offer the ideal framework for collaborative initiatives between firms, policy-makers and the academia.

As the world is facing major economic downturn the 23rd edition of the TCI Global Conference will explore how clusters can be leveraged to accelerate a return to form for our regional economies. How can they capitalise on the local economic fabric's existing strengths ? How can they plug local into a more global pulse ?

Join-in and get some clues from worldwide experts and practitioners.