Regional innovation activity is traditionally considered to be a three-way street. The business sphere, education and research institutions as well as local and regional government have sought jointly to come up with new concepts. What will happen when the threesome becomes a foursome with the addition of civil society?
Answers to this question will be pursued over the next three years with the help of a European innovation project. The aim of the CLIQ project is to foster innovation activity particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises as well as investigate specifically the roles of local government and civil society in innovation efforts.
One goal is also to find ways in which the creativity of ordinary citizens can be made use of in producing innovations.
"The hope is that the voice of civil society will come to the fore. We are searching for channels by means of which citizens and their organisations can become involved in dreaming up products and services which they themselves may need", says Laura Ahonen, European Officer of the City of Jyväskylä.
For local government the CLIQ project will produce a toolbox supporting innovation activity together with recommendations on innovation policy. During the project there will also be an international exchange of experiences and results. In each of the areas taking part a number of case studies of good practice will be conducted as well as international comparative study.
"The four actor model has never been studied before, at least not from a theoretical standpoint. The study will establish how these four strands - enterprises, institutions of education and research, government and civil society - could jointly support each other and drive innovation activity", Ahonen continues.
The project will be coordinated by the City of Jyväskylä. CLIQ brings together partners in Finland, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Greece, the United Kingdom, Lithuania, France and Italy.
--------
CLIQ
- Creating Local Innovation for SMEs through a Quadruple Helix.
- Seeks to find practices by which, among others, the creative potential of ordinary citizens can be harnessed for the creation of regional innovations.
- Implementation period 1.11.2008-31.10.2011.
- Involves 17 partners from 11 different countries.
- Has a project budget of EUR 1.95 million. EU funding (75%) will come from the INTERREG IVC programme. Funding from the Finnish state, through the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, will account for 70% of national funding.
By Tommi Salo