The University of Bergen (UiB) and NORCE Norwegian Research Centre invite you to the event, “New Challenges to Democracy – How can R&I contribute to a future robust society?” The event will take place on 23 January 2024 at the Sofitel Hotel, Place Jourdan 1, Brussels.

At this event we will discuss new challenges to democracy, and dive deeper into three main themes: AI, climate change, and democratic deliberation. The University of Bergen (UiB) and NORCE Norwegian Research Centre invite you to an insightful discussion with researchers, policymakers, and experts. 

Full programme and further information will be updated here in the coming weeks. 

You can already register here.

The event will be moderated by: Maryline FIASCHI, CEO, Science Business 

The European Commission is organising a matchmaking event for the Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030 on 4 March 2024 in Brussels. This event will be organised at the Mission Ocean and Waters Forum, which will take place on 5 March. 

Please note that this event is for Mission Charter signatories only. 

The matchmaking event aims to facilitate the uptake and replication of solutions to implement the Mission Ocean and Waters, with a particular focus on supporting Charter signatories for the deployment of the Mission. It will feature presentations by:

1. Mission projects on solutions to test and deploy in each basin
2. Charter signatories (e.g. regions, islands, cities, ports) on their proposed actions 
3. Philanthropies and investors on possible support   

All presentations will be uploaded on a dedicated page visible to the participants to organise bilateral meetings at the matchmaking event to facilitate collaborations on deployment actions.

The Commission intends to provide support for travel and accommodation to a limited number of signatories interested in actively attending the matchmaking event and the Mission Ocean and Waters Forum in Brussels on 4-5 March, 2024.

Charter signatories have received information on how to apply for travel and accommodation support.

If your region or a stakeholder from your region recently has signed the Charter and has not yet received the invitation to the matchmaking event, you can contact silvia.ghiretti@errin.eu or heidi.johansson@errin.eu who can facilitate the contact with the Mission Secretariat for the invitation. 

Please find here more information on the Mission Forum and the European Ocean Days.
 

On 7 December, ERRIN celebrated the network’s achievements in 2023. Following an engaging meeting with leaders of our 15 Working Groups, all ERRIN members were invited to a cocktail reception featuring a keynote from Markus Schulte, Head of Cabinet of Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.

ERRIN was thrilled to share some of the network’s highlights through a video, as well as hear from two of our Working Group Leaders, Francoise Guaspare from Ile-de-France Europe and Joanna Kubiak from Wielkopolska Region.

ERRIN's work around EU Missions was featured, such as the signing of the Mission Soil Manifesto, the launch of ERRIN's Adaptation Task Force and the kick-off of two Mission Climate Adaptation projects Pathways2Resilience and RESIST, the support to stakeholder engagement in the Mission Cities though the MOSAIC project, the ongoing dialogues with the European Commission to advocate the crucial role of regions in Mission Ocean and Mission Cancer.

Picking a couple more highlights, with the ecosystem approach at the heart of the network, ERRIN actively followed and facilitated members' engagement in Regional Innovation Valleys and Partnership for Regional Innovation. Furthermore, there were continued efforts for widening and deepening engagement in R&I by emphasising its importance in external consultations as well as through internal activities such as mutual learning sessions on building innovation ecosystems.

Looking towards 2024, ERRIN will actively engage in discussions on the upcoming R&I framework programme (FP10) and continue enhancing project development support for members that we started this year. ERRIN is looking forward to continuing to support regional and local stakeholders to develop their innovation ecosystems in 2024!

Check out our highlights in a 3-minute video here.

The RESPONSE project is organising its 5th Webinar: Collaborative Citizen Engagement in the development of Positive Energy Districts (PED) - focused on introducing the topic “Collaborative Citizen Engagement in the Development of Positive Energy Districts” and presentation of RESPONSE activities regarding citizen engagement implemented in the 2 Lighthouse Cities of Turku and Dijon.

The webinar will be held on 16 January 2024 from 12:00 to 13:00 CEST and aims to increase public awareness of RESPONSE and to create new links between organisations, and enable learning and knowledge exchange processes, especially between Lighthouse and Fellow cities.

The event is free of charge, but registration is required.

Please find more information here.

Please register here.

Agenda

12:00 – 12:03 Welcome

Welcome to the participants, Ana Fernandes - SPI

12:03 – 12:15 Introduction to RESPONSE and activities on collaborative citizen engagement

Ritva Salminiitty - Citizen Engagement Manager - TUAS

Activities in LHCs – City of Turku

12:15 – 12:25 Citizens creating engagement activities themselves

Martina Angeleri – RESPONSE mentor

12:25 – 12:35 Hackathon as a tool to promote local innovation

Rauli Lautkankare – Hackathon leader - TUAS

Activities in LHCs – City of Dijon

12:35 – 12:55 How did RESPONSE reach citizens in LHC of Dijon - learning by doing

Hadrien Rouchette – Project manager - Dijon Métropole

12:55 – 13:00 Q&A (Via Chat)

Questions will be collected during partner cities' presentations

Ana Fernandes – SPI

13:00 Conclusion Ritva Salminiitty - Citizen engagement manager - TUAS

Based on the feedback received from ERRIN members in the Annual Member Survey in October 2022, the development of the next European Framework Programme for R&I (FP10) and R&I dimension in the future cohesion policy post-2027 were identified as some of the network’s priority long-term areas of focus for the coming years. ERRIN has already launched targeted work on the topic in the autumn of last year.

Along these lines, the Policy Working Group will kick off 2024 with a meeting offering the latest insights with regard to the work at the EU level towards future R&I and cohesion policies. The event will take place in person at the ERRIN premises on 30 January from 14:00-15:30, followed by networking coffee until 16:00. Speakers will be invited to present the state of play of the process of developing R&I and cohesion policies post-2027 and share reflections for the future. This should serve to create links between thinking on both policies and set the scene for further discussions on the two frameworks within ERRIN.

As this will be the first Policy WG meeting of 2024, a few minutes at its end will also be taken to briefly present the planned activities for the year of all the ERRIN strategic cluster working groups: Policy, Smart Specialisation, Innovation & Investment and Science & Education for Society.

You may find the meeting agenda attached.

Thank you for attending this Policy WG meeting. You may find the presentations from the session on this page.

The Transport Working Group is looking for two new co-leaders to join Ile-de-France, Stuttgart and Aragon in steering the WG activities and priorities.

Candidates should be knowledgeable and experienced in EU policy on transport and have a good insight into different research and innovation areas related to mobility. Among other criteria, we will consider the capacity and the portfolio of the candidates and the member organisation, as well as the geographical and gender balance among leaders. The candidates must be Brussels-based.

Please express your interest by sending an email to silvia.ghiretti@errin.eu and gaia.marotta@errin.eu stating your motivation, areas of expertise and what you would like to achieve as a Working Group leader by Wednesday 24 January.

Learn more about the role of WG leaders here.

ERRIN and the TRAMI project, dedicated to the implementation of the five EU Missions, are organising a Mutual Learning Event (MLE) aiming to explore synergies between European Partnerships and EU Missions. The event will take place on Wednesday 7 February from 9:00 to 12:00 (CET) at the NCBR Brussels Office, Rue Belliard 40, Brussels.

While these two initiatives of the Horizon Europe programme have unique characteristics, aligning them strategically can lead to transformative outcomes for our economy and society. A well-coordinated approach between European Partnerships and EU Missions will help to tackle some of Europe's most pressing challenges while contributing to the achievement of the Missions' objectives.

The event will focus on synergies from a practical perspective by engaging experts directly involved in the implementations of EU Missions and European Partnerships. It will also contribute to the creation of the upcoming FP10 by providing reflections on what is working well, but also key challenges and potential areas for improvement.

The collaborative exchange during the event presents a unique opportunity for ERRIN members to engage in a practical and shared learning experience.

To participate in this event, please register by sending an email to karolina.dutkiewicz-garcia@ncbr.gov.pl by Friday 26 January.

ERRIN has established a close collaboration with the TRAMI project, which aims to enhance the cooperation and coordination between EU, national, regional and local actions in support of the implementation of EU Missions. By co-organising two Mutual Learning Events on the role of the regional policy and the triple helix collaboration, ERRIN and TRAMI provided a platform for sharing best practices and fostering collaboration among industry, academia, public sector to drive innovation for the EU Missions.

The EU Missions is one of the priority topics of ERRIN. You can read more about the work conducted on this dedicated webpage. 

Emerging policy challenges on New SOil contaminants (ENSOr) Workshop

The 5th and festive edition of ENSOr taking place on 14 and 15th of March 2024 in Brussels. The event will be held in the context of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU. This time, we set our sights on the challenges related to diffuse soil pollution with emerging contaminants.

Unlike point source pollution with a clear identifiable source of contamination, diffuse soil pollution is more widespread and originates from sources which are not always identified. As a result, tackling diffuse soil pollution requires a fit-for-purpose approach which may have similarities with the approach taken for point sources, but also important differences. With this ENSOr workshop we aim to tackle questions such as: What is the impact of diffuse soil pollution on the reuse of excavated soil, on ground water supplies and food safety? How do we monitor and assess the risks? Which policy is needed to tackle challenges such as diffuse pollution resulting from emissions from traffic, agricultural practices (e.g. fertilizers and plant protection products), discharges of WWTPs, floods, etc.?

With this 5th ENSOr workshop, we gather policymakers, researchers, soil remediation experts, risk assessors, and other interested stakeholders to share experiences and pave the way forward. 

Programme

There will be contributions on 5 selected topics: 

• Topic 1. Monitoring of diffuse soil pollution
• Topic 2. Risk assessment of diffuse soil pollution
• Topic 3. Policy challenges related to diffuse soil pollution
• Topic 4. Remediation and risk management of diffuse soil pollution
• Topic 5. Impact of diffuse soil pollution on the reuse of excavated soil
• Topic 6. Impact of diffuse soil pollution on water supplies

Save the date in your calendar. The detailed program will be published soon via this webpage.