Objectives

The main objective of the ForTransRIS project is to incorporate trans-regional foresight processes, as an essential tool in order to motivate a new Regional Innovation System model in the EU, based on trans-regional cooperation and knowledge and technology transfer. This model defines new roles for the companies, research centres and regional authorities.

The project aims:

a) To develop the necessary methodology for carrying out processes of trans-regional foresight in order to improve the Regional Innovation Strategies.

The project will develop a benchmarking process to analyse different foresight methodologies, applied in the regional innovation systems, which will be contributed by the scientific partners (producers of the methodology).

Then, such methodologies will be contrasted by the opinion of the Regional Authorities, in charge of the innovation policies (users of the methodology) in order to establish an own methodological proposal.

This methodological proposal will be specified in the following Guide: “The Transregional Foresight as the essential tool for the design and improvement of the Regional Innovation Systems”. This guide will be published and widely circulated among the Regional Innovation Systems’ responsible.

b) To apply the Trans-regional Foresight Methodology for the improvement and best integration of the Regional Innovation Strategies in the European context.

The lack of integration and cooperation is one of the most important barriers for the European Research Area development. It is also a reason why the EU gets behind USA or Japan in the field of the Innovation. The resource dispersion impedes to reach the critical mass, necessary for obtaining good results. This situation is very common both at the internal level of the regions and in the national and European context.

The project wants to show that the development of Foresight processes can help in promoting the regional and trans-regional cooperation.

In each participant region a “Regional Experts Network” will be set up. The group consists of high-level representatives of the following actors: Academy, Administration, Public Research Bodies, Technology Transfer Offices, Companies, Technological Centres and Financial Institutions.

A “Trans-regional Experts Network” will be also set up. The group consists of people from the participant regions and other European experts in Innovation Foresight activities.