​​​The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the European Commission are pleased to invite you to the seminar "Implementation of the New European Innovation Agenda – What is in it for regions and cities?" organised in the framework of their Knowledge Exchange Platform (KEP 2.0). The event will take place on Thursday, 28 September 2023, from 14:30 to 18:00, in person at CoR in Brussels.

This thematic seminar will focus on the regional and local dimensions of the New European Innovation Agenda, including the opportunities for Regional Innovation Valleys. ERRIN Director Pirita Lindholm will speak in the panel discussion in the second part of the event on setting the policy frame, discussing practical examples from regions.

You may find more details about the event and the draft agenda here​. Should you wish to participate, you are invited to register here in your earliest convenience. Interpretation will be provided in: EN, FR, DE, ES, IT, PT.

The objective of the renewed KEP 2.0 initiative is to enable the exchange of new R&I solutions and best practices, by organising horizontal seminars in Brussels, and promoting so-called peer-to-peer and showcasing events on the ground. It allows for an efficient dialogue and transfer of expertise on R&I issues with European cities and regions, businesses, universities and citizens.

The upcoming KEP 2.0 seminar is organised back to back with the Science Meets Regions final event that will take place on 27-28 September. The event will bring together current and former participants in the project, taking stock of the results but also reflecting on the future. It will also establish linkages with other lines of work on evidence for policy, across levels of governance. ERRIN Director Pirita Lindholm will speak in the panel discussion on the future of the Partnerships for Regional Innovation which will be held on 28 September from 11:30-13:00. Find more details about the agenda and registration for the Science Meets Regions final event here.

Following the Commission's proposal to create a New European Bauhaus Mission, the ERRIN Task Force is organising an event focusing on the bottom-up approaches to NEB that have been developed during the last few years and their role in the Mission’s development. The meeting will be an occasion to hear from best practices on how local ecosystems gathered together to co-develop new strategies and activities using the NEB priorities and approach.  Moreover, during the event, we will discuss the challenges and expectations towards the future NEB mission, its objectives, implementation, funding, and R&I needed for the successful implementation of the Mission. The output of this meeting will be used to develop an ERRIN answer to the ongoing NEB consultations.

We are looking for local examples to be pitched during the meeting. To register for the event and to express your interest in pitching an example, fill in the webform below (deadline for expressions of interest: 25 September). The pitches can be presented online, however, speakers should make sure that there is a Brussels-based representative present at the meeting. The interactive discussion will be run in person with limited possibility to contribute online.

The questions below are based on the NEB consultations and will be part of the interactive discussions. We invite all members and their stakeholders to provide input beforehand. To request a document version for circulation, please write to gaia.marotta@errin.eu or agnieszka.wieczorek@errin.eu.

AMU Nordjylland is a vocational School located in Northern Denmark, interested in forming strategic partnerships and project partners in transnational projects with a specific focus on the development and dissemination of innovative practices in the VET sector.

PRESENTATION OF THE SCHOOL

AMU Nordjylland is situated in Aalborg in the northern part of Jutland, offering:

• Vocational education, on secondary and adult levels (EUD and EUV)
• Adult vocational training programmes (AMU)

Through a combination of school based teaching and apprenticeships, mainly in private industries and businesses, students are taught and trained for work in specific fields, including:

• Construction (concrete)
• Facility Management
• Transportation and Logistics
• Gardening and Landscaping
• Electronics and Technology
• Catering Services
• Cleaning Services
• Social and Health Services
• Robotic Process Automation, RPA
• Organisational Development
• Working Environments and Energy Optimization
• IT

AMU Nordjylland has a strong focus on supporting our local and regional labour markets with relevant training and educational opportunities. The school offers vocational education on both secondary and adult levels and adult vocational training programmes – from beginner to specialised levels.

In this role, AMU Nordjylland plays an important part in relation to local and regional seasonal-, cyclical and structural unemployment, and therefore they are in close dialogue with representatives from industry, labour unions and local and regional authorities.

ADMISSIONS AND STUDENTS (2022)

• Student enrolment in Vocational education (secondary and adult levels): 800
• Student enrolment in Adult vocational training programmes: 25.000
• Total Faculty: 100
• Total Employees: 200

PROJECT EXPERIENCE

AMU Nordjylland regularly participates in a variety of projects as a Lead Partner, Regional Coordinating Partner, or just a regular project participant. As such the institution has sufficient administrative capacity and management expertise to coordinate the implementation of project goals and to keep track of progress and assigned budgets. AMU Nordjyllands current project portfolio includes:

• Blended Learning in Adult Training Programmes (National program)
• Vocational Education on the Road to Success (European Social Fund)
• Personal competency and professional collaboration (Funding from The North Denmark Region)
• Digitally Supported Teaching in Vocational Education (European Social Fund)
• School Communities, Student Well-being and Student Retention (Funding from The North Denmark Region)
• Green Career paths (European Social Fund)
• The path to Vocational Education and Growth (European Social Fund)

AMU Nordjylland is an experienced project partner, project coordinator and/or project Lead. They have extensive administrative experience from several EU programmes, e.g. 

• European Social Fund
• EU Interreg. European Regional Development Fund
• Erasmus exchange programme
• State programmes
• Regional programmes

PROJECTS OF INTEREST

At AMU Nordjylland they have a wide variety of developmental interests. In particular, they seek partners interested in forming strategic partnerships and project partners in transnational projects with a specific focus on the development and dissemination of innovative practices in the VET sector. The institutions they seek are set on working together to develop innovative concepts, methods and instruments, share good practices and utilise synergies. Specifically, their project interests are:

• Educational and -career counselling
  • Student centered counselling in VET
     
• Vocational teaching and pedagogy (teacher training)
  • Teaching-internships 
  • Job-shadowing for VET teachers
  • Transference in VET teaching
  • Learner-centred approaches in VET teaching 
     
• Attracting more students to start on a VET (following primary education levels)
  • Student retention and improvement of completion rates
  • Internships and apprenticeships eg. student exchanges (via Erasmus)

More information:

• AMU Nordjylland website
• Vocational education and training in Denmark

If you are interested in getting in touch, please contact Maria Juhl at msj@ndeu.dk or +45 6188 0018.

As part of the European Week of Regions and Cities an event on "Social and Health Integration: the roles of Regions in the framework of the European initiatives" is being held. The event will take place on 11 October from 11:30-12:30.

Quality, affordable and accessible care services are key to promoting social innovation across the European Union. As the recent publication of the European Care Strategy clearly states, this transformational change cannot be achieved without the strong and clear involvement of local and regional authorities. This event aims to showcase LRA instruments in this sector, specifically focusing on the Technical Support Instrument coordinated by DG REFORM and innovation procurement.

Please register here

Interested in the future of mobility and the innovative solutions driving change in the sector? Don't miss the REMOBILISE webinar, where you will embark on a journey through the diverse mobility ecosystems of REMOBILISE partners. 

In this online event, you will explore the key trends and challenges shaping the mobility sector. Expert mobility clusters will provide valuable insights into their ecosystems and focus on specific topics central to their activities, including Materials, Power Electronics, Hydrogen, Smart Cities, and Batteries. 

Each presentation will first showcase the main local and national actors of the sector, as well as information on the latest developments and arising challenges. Speakers will then highlight ongoing initiatives in each partner’s ecosystem and identify regional/national funding opportunities. 

Please find more information and register here. 

With 2023 marking the tercentenary of Adam Smith, widely recognised today as the founder of modern economics, the University of Glasgow and Scotland Europa are delighted to invite you to the upcoming event “From net zero to wellbeing and equalities: What is a wealthy nation?”, held on 20 September from 17:30-20:00. 

Adam Smith is one of the University of Glasgow’s most famous students, professors and one of its first ever world changers. This discussion will mark his tercentenary year by returning to Smith’s simple, but fundamental, question: ‘What is a wealthy nation’? Three hundred years since his birth, economists are still grappling with this question. With Smith advocating for a definition that looked beyond the gold and silver of a nation’s merchants, we can trace his influence in today’s push for wellbeing, equality, and exposure to climate change to be factored into indicators of economic success.

To offer a more contemporary take on this question, the University of Glasgow and Scotland Europa will bring together an expert panel to explore the different elements at play that define the wealth of a nation today. Constituting part of the University of Glasgow’s ongoing Adam Smith Tercentenary commemorations, the panel will discuss factors such as citizen wellbeing, climate change and net zero adaptation, as well as social inequalities to respond to Adam’s Smith famous question and better understand what exactly makes a wealthy nation today.

The evening will be kindly hosted and the discussion moderated by Kezia Dugdale, Director of the University of Glasgow’s John Smith Centre. We are also delighted to welcome the following speakers:

• Graeme Roy – Professor of Economics at the University of Glasgow and Chair of the Scottish Fiscal Commission
• Rachel Lancry Beaumont – Head of Unit at the Commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy and EU Budget at the Committee of the Regions
• Fabian Zuleeg – Chief Executive and Chief Economist of the European Policy Centre
• Elizabeth Dirth – Development Director of the ZOE Institute for Future-fit Economies

The event will take place on Wednesday 20 September from 17:30 – 19:00 at Scotland House Brussels (6 Rond-Point Schuman). Guests are then invited to join us for a networking reception from 19:00 following the discussion.

If you would like to join us for the event, please register via email here.  

The European Commission proposed to establish a sixth mission under Horizon Europe dedicated to the New European Bauhaus to make the green transformation of the built environment more accessible, affordable and attractive to neighbourhoods. Several consultations are now open to gather input on the objectives, implementation and financing of the Mission, among others.

The purpose of this targeted consultation is to gather the views of the professional community on the R&I needed for the transformation of our construction ecosystem, in order to identify and define the right components to design this potential future mission.

The five surveys can be found below: 

• The objectives of the proposed New European Bauhaus mission: Survey
• The implementation of the proposed New European Bauhaus mission: Survey
• R&I for the transformation of our construction ecosystem: Survey
• R&I for innovative funding approaches: Survey
• R&I for community engagement and local democracy: Survey

ERRIN will work on gathering the input during the next NEB Task Force meeting planned for 3 October at 15:30-17:00.

The NetZeroCities project, in which ERRIN is a partner, has opened a second Call for Pilot Cities.

Mission Cities which are not yet part of the Pilot Cities Programme can apply to test and implement innovative approaches towards rapid decarbonisation. This two-year programme will support cities in implementing systemic and locally designed innovative actions combining social, cultural, technological, nature-based, regulatory, and financial innovation, and new business and governance models to underpin the climate transition. 

Cities will receive support in the amounts of € 0.5 – 0.6 million, € 1 million, or € 1.5 milliony and scale up R&I and systemic solutions and learn through hands-on application on the journey to climate neutrality.

The Call for Pilot Cities is open until 6 November 2023 17.00 CET. More information, including the Call documents, is available here.

The ERRIN Secretariat is pleased to invite you to the upcoming ERRIN Intro Coffee.

ERRIN Intro Coffee meetings aim to offer a concise introduction to ERRIN and its services, as well as encourage networking between members. Organised several times a year, they are directed mainly towards new ERRIN members and new staff additions in our members’ offices, but all interested members are welcome to participate. We are delighted to invite you to join us in person!

The meeting will take place on Friday 20 October from 10:00-11:30 at the ERRIN premises.

During the first part of the meeting, the ERRIN Secretariat colleagues will:

• Provide background information on ERRIN’s mission and on our wide range of activities.
• Present the structure of our thematic working groups, projects and project facilitation process, and how members can get involved and contribute.
• Give an overview of online tools available for our members and how to use them to maximise the added value of your membership.

After that, everyone will have a chance to get to know each other and network, informally exchanging ideas, opportunities and questions. Participants will be able to connect and discover points of common interest, which can grant inspiration and a starting point for further cooperation and engagement in specific ERRIN activities. 

Thank you for attending this ERRIN Intro Coffee. You may find the presentation from the session on this page.