1. Identifying Good Practice * * * the RegioStars experience
Katja Reppel REGIO.D.2 Thematic coordination and innovation
26 February 2008

2. What is “good practice”?
No definition in absolute terms:
Economic, social, cultural and geographic situations and administrative traditions differ
Evolution in time of needs and conditions
No “one-size-fits-all” recipe for success
Dynamic, context-based definition:
Identify what has worked well in which situation: ex-ante & ex-post
Make experiences accessible and comparable
Facilitate actors to meet and learn from each other

3. EU actions to identify and disseminate good practices
Analysis:
Studies, evaluation reports, expert groups …
Policy analysis and observatories: SME, Innovation Policy TrendChart, ERA-Watch, Cluster Observatory …
Communication:
Web-portals & publications: Cordis, PRO INNO Europe portal, …
Awards: RegioStars, Enterprise awards, Europe INNOVA Awards, ...
Conferences, work shops, seminars ....
Networking, for instance:
Structural Funds: INTERREG IVC, URBACT
Innovation, ICT, IEEP in energy, entrepreneurship & SMEs: INNO-Nets, Learning Platforms …
R&D: ERA-Nets, OMC-Nets, Regions of Knowledge
CoR: Lisbon Monitoring Platform

4. Cohesion Policy Contribution
Analysis:
Case studies on Inforegio and IANIS sites
Policy analysis: URBACT national policy database, …
Evaluation reports, annual implementation reports, URBACT project results …
Communication:
Web-portal on Inforegio & publications
Conferences: thematic & annual; take stock of new experiences, approaches and success stories; contribution to other conferences & seminars
RegioStars Awards: good practice emanating from SF activities, including Innovative Actions Programmes
Networking:
INTERREG IVC, URBACT networks between regions and cities: partnership in action
See Inforegio web-site:
URBACT web-site:
INTERREG III+IV C: &

5. Regions for Economic Change
http: //ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm
To demonstrate the array of resources available:
Database of case studies:
summaries of 40 innovation projects (Regional Programmes of Innovative Actions 2000 – 2006) developed by regional authorities in different domains:
enterprise clustering, science and industry networking, ICT services for citizens and many others.
+ 26 finalists of the 2008 RegioStars applications (see summaries in brochure): mainstream +INTERREG, RPIA / programmes + projects
+ 60 case studies by experts (Technopolis)
They include:
strategic context
innovative dimension
partnership
obstacles encountered in design or implementation
lessons learnt and the good practices identified
+ contact details of project managers
some common findings:
partnerships and networks take time to build - trust and effective communication between partners
active and consistent management and design: the necessary support has to be provided during the whole project life and often far beyond

6.
URBACT

7. INTERREG III C

8. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society Network

9. The “fast track” option for networks
Two-way bridges between networks & mainstream:
From Community Strategic Guidelines on Cohesion & Lisbon objectives: selection of 30 priority themes
New emphasis on communication, dissemination and capitalisation of results
Wider partnership: bring the Committee of the Regions into the programmes & involve other COM services and their activities / networks
State of play:
Three pilot projects under INTERREG III C & URBACT for testing approach
Analysis of applications under first INTERREG IV C and URBACT calls; then decision by Network Programme Monitoring Committee
Regions for Economic Change

10. Regions for Economic Change
The RegioStars awards
Promote excellence in regional policy:
Incentive for managing authorities and regional actors to publicise their success stories
Motivate other regional players to experiment with innovative approaches or get inspired by good examples
Support the implementation of Lisbon Strategy & Cohesion Strategic Guidelines by facilitating implementation measures
Raise awareness of excellence in regional development policy in other policy areas (research, environment …)
Highlight the contribution of regional actors to other EU priorities (in 2009: year of creativity and innovation)
Regions for Economic Change

11. Themes for 2009: closing session Regions for Economic Change
RegioStars 2008
Sustainable Economic Development:
Energy efficiency and renewable energies
Environmental technologies
Regional economies based on knowledge and technological innovation
Technology transfer from research institutes to SMEs
Supporting clusters and business networks
Themes for 2009: closing session
Regions for Economic Change

12. Thank you for your attention!
Information on the RegioStars 2009 Award: