Cross-Border Cooperation Agenda

Results of the local valley agendas (comp 3), international activities and recommendations of the advisory board will be assembled to develop a common “Eco4Life cross border cooperation agenda”. Representatives from the project partners, regional authorities, academia and industry shall comment and give final commitment to this agenda. It will finally serve as a valuable roadmap for South Baltic development and an important tool for the implementation of the EU Strategy for the BSR.

 

CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION AGENDA

1.    Cross-Border Cooperation in the Eco4Life Application proposal

 

Following the application form, Eco4Life was intended to open access from ScanBalt BioRegion to experts in the South Baltic and serve as a gate for mutual flow of information and knowledge. The methodology for cross-border cooperation was planned to  follow the principle of “think global – act local”: on the local side Eco4Life contact points will be established with the task to set up regional networks, to interconnect them and to promote cross-border activities, to be implemented in three steps:

Information – Networking –Catalyzing.

Information:
A regional “knowledge” point will be established; a survey of the bio-/ecotech community in the region will be realised offering fast access to incoming request for science and industry in the region and in addition from the project partners. A webpage is implemented with relevant facts and figures of the regions, ongoing activities and conferences and news of relevance for the region partners e.g. EU legislations, new start up fonds and investments.

 

Networking:
The Eco4Life managers in the region establish a living and active community with diverse kind of actions, e.g. regional round tables to relevant topics in science, technology transfer and business. Fundamental to these activities is the exchange of

knowledge of the project partners to be invited to present their experiences (“triple helix”).

 

 

Catalysing:
Due to the accumulated knowledge and experience of the bio-/eco-communities in the region and in the regions of the project partner fast and competent support for mobilization of cross-border cooperation will be initiated. Beyond regular project workshops three international meetings a will be held in the South Baltic to be embedded in the ScanBalt network allowing fast access to other partners in the BSR.

 

 

 

2.    Cross-border Cooperation within the Eco4Life LifeSpan 2010-2013

 

Information:
As a central measure regional “Eco4Life” contact points (ECP) focusing on environmental and life sciences were be established by the LB and the project partners in Greifswald (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany), Szczecin (Western Pomerania, PL) and Klaipeda (Klaipeda Region, Lithuania). These contact points were run in the sense of a “one-stop agency”, by the Eco4Life project managers, and made contacts to the regional experts and offered fast access to incoming requests to science and business in the regions and from the project partners. Furtehr information was provides by the project´s website and newsletter. The 3 Eco4Life Contact points were closely linked, exchanged information between the points, to guarantee cross-border cooperation between the regions.

 

Networking
The three regional Eco4Life contact points represented the docking point to national and international network organizations and for regional SME´s who usually do not have the critical mass to be competitive on an international level during the Eco4Life lifespan.

Cross-border Networking between the 3 partner regions was realized by setting up 5 thematic networks, with partners from science, industry and administration from all 3 partner regions.

 

Catalysing:
Due to the workshops and internationals conferences witin the project, cross-border cooperation was initiated with special projects:

 

During the project lifespan crossborder relations between "No-Bias i.G." (Greifswald, GE) and   ReadGene S.A. (Szczecin, PL), envero GmbH (Rostock, GE) , Klaipeda Park (Klaipeda, LT) & Synergia Spoo, Gilupi GmbH (Greifswald, GE) and READGene S.A.,  Infokom mit Green Hospital, and BioArt Products  mit Laboratory Society in Szcezcin were established, with Coopertions and/or application of projects in progress.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cross-border Cooperation tools and service

Cooperation tools:

The project provides a study guide CleanTech for the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Region (1) and LifeScience-CleanTech for the Western Pomeranian and Klaipeda Region (2), to improve exchance of students /trainees between the project partner regions as a mean of boostering entrepreneurship. Websites (3-6), and LinkedIn Professionalist social media groups  (7-10) for each Pilot Network were setup to serve as a topic specific information and communication  hub for the SME network members on activities in the SBR and the ScanBalt Flagship Project.

 

Cooperation service:

With the 5 thematic networks as cooperation service,  the cooperation between the region could be focused, and directed to the topics relevant for further cross-border development:

-        Diabetes

-        Green Heathcare

-        Clinical Trials

-        BioEconomy

-        BioMaterials & Devices.

 

3.    Cross-border Cooperation after the Eco4Life Project (from 2014)

 

Information:
The project partners will  maintain their regional “Eco4Life” contact points (ECP) focusing on environmental and life sciences in Greifswald (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany), Szczecin (Western Pomerania, PL) and Klaipeda (Klaipeda Region, Lithuania). These contact points will continue a certain basic work in the sense of a “one-stop agency” for their regions and for collaboration with the other partner contact points, as well as with the Northern part of the Baltic Sea Region/ScanBalt Flagship Health Region, by the project managers.

The rooms for the Contact Points, telephone devices and website will be maintained by the LB and its partners for a reasonable time, to guarantee the sustainability of the project´s results. Via the LinkedIn Business groups, the contact points inform the thematic networks on current events and developments.

The German Eco4Life Contact Point is intended to be transformed into a ScanBalt Liaison Office in MV, to strengthen the implementation of the projects outcomes into the ScanBalt Flagship Health Region.

 

Networking

Project Partner will contribute after the project lifespan with regional information from the LifeScience and Green Valley sector for the updating the project´s websites and the pilot networks of Diabetes, Green HealthCare, Clinical Trials, and Bioeconomy, and the eCampus (Summer School), the Yellow Pages Directory LifeScience & Green Valley, Pilot Network newsletters at the German Eco4Life Contact Point.
The 5 thematic networks will be supported in their possible development into clusters with clusters services like cross-border clinical trial platform, or diabetes training.

 

Catalysing:

Thus, via these sustainable measures, of information and networking, even after the project lifespan, the South Baltic Region will be closer embedded in the ScanBalt network allowing fast access to other partners in the BSR.

Partners will follow-up the joint ISIS Innovation agenda implementation, and participate and contribute to  the annual Baltic Sea Health Region Meetings (as International part of the National Conference of Heath Economy), e.g. with the development of innovative financial services for the (south)Baltic Region.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eco4Life Contact Point Greifswald,
December 2013