New deadline, only for the 12 successful candidates of the stage one of the submission procedure:

17/10/2013 at 17:00:00 (Brussels local time) - 2nd deadline (for 2-stage procedure)

Following stage one, the 12 successful candidates are now invited to submit full proposals by Thursday 17 October 2013 outlining in detail how a 'systemic approach' shall be followed to reshape existing industrial value chains and/or to create new value chains thereby stimulating growth and employment.  The objectives of the full proposal must be consistent and in accordance with the successful concept note, extending it by providing full details about the approach and its implementation.

The main objective of this call for proposals is to support regions to adapt and change their industrial structures to unlock the potential of clusters and entrepreneurship for regional economic development and for addressing societal challenges such as reducing CO2 emissions, improving resource efficiency and environmental protection. The aim is in particular to better capitalise on all forms of creativity, new technologies and the transformative power of innovation to shape new globally competitive value chains that may help to foster the development of emerging industries in Europe. By supporting the development of more fertile environments in which small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can combine creativity with the use of new technologies and more resource efficient solutions, new business opportunities may arise that result in smarter and more sustainable growth.

The call therefore aims to stimulate activities that have the potential to radical innovations that result from such cross-sectoral collaboration and that have a systemic impact. By "systemic impact" innovations are meant that fundamentally change sectoral boundaries and help improve the overall efficiency of the eco-system by, for example, better valorising all forms of creativity and promoting resource efficiency. Such innovations have a profound impact on the way the economy is organised and resources are allocated.

It is therefore not sufficient to simply follow a project-oriented approach that demonstrates the technical feasibility of product and/or service innovations through pilot actions. Instead, a “systemic approach” is called for that strives for putting in place a favourable environment for developing and testing new business models that integrate such radical innovations under real-life conditions into existing value chains or successfully shape new ones.

The three presentations put forward during the Info Day on 20 March 2013 are available below.