2nd new cluster services training in Cluj

On 17 and 18 May 2018, Cluj hosted the “EU-Asia Gateway” international conference aimed at bridging clusters from Europe and East and South East Asia. It was the 4th international cluster conference organized by the Northern Transylvanian Cluster Consortium, under the umbrella of the Romanian Cluster Association – CLUSTERO.

Rationale behind is the fact that the establishment of cross-clustering  partnerships in order to boost eco-innovation and to develop a joint biobased value added network in the Danube Region requires the development of new cluster services as a key element in supporting cluster members in becoming more innovative and more competitive in the context of the new industrial value chains and in particular in the biobased industry.

Author: Romanian Cluster Association, Romania

ROADMAPPING WORKSHOP ON BIOBASED PACKAGING VALUE CHAIN

From 24 to 25 May 2018, a two-day international Roadmapping workshop on Biobased Packaging value chain in the Danube Region took place in Ljubljana, Slovenia.  It was organised by two European Interreg co-funded projects:  DanuBioValNet and BIOCOMPACK-CE. The basic goal of the workshop was to further the ties and common understanding among representatives of all relevant players and stakeholders in biobased packaging and the bioeconomy in general.

As organizers of the event, the Ministry of Education Science and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia, Anteja ECG and the National Institute of Chemistry brought together over 56 participants (clusters, industry, academia, experts, policy makers and SMEs) and 11 speakers from 10 European countries to discuss future trends and gaps in the Bio-Packaging value chain.  The primary focus was on market and consumer needs in the Danube Region.

The outcomes of the workshop will help to inform policy on how to improve conditions and support the environment for raising the competitiveness and awareness along the biobased packaging value chain in the region.  Findings and recommendations will be included as inputs for the upcoming project strategy actions.

Author: Anteja ECG d.o.o., Slovenia

THE BIOECONOMY COURSE IN CESKE BUDEJOVICE FOR A THIRD TIME

The University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, has been the pioneer of the bioeconomy awareness building since 2016 when the first Bioeconomy Course was organised. It is based on a multidisciplinary approach, covering a wide spectrum of topics from sciences, economy, business, law and communication. The course represents a domain for communication about the importance of bioeconomy among science, policy and practice. This year, the Bioeconomy Course took place on 21 – 25 May 2018 and, as well as the last year, the programme included the National Cluster Association´s (NCA-CZ) presentation of the DanuBioValNet project as an important vehicle of the biobased society concept fostering.

Author: National Cluster Association, Czech Republic

3rd cluster services training in Opatija

The third cluster manager training of the DanuBioValNet project, held in June in Opatija, Croatia, delivered several interesting conclusions and recommendations. The main topic of the training was related to the development of new cluster services that could support the internationalisation of clusters. After several interesting presentations, the Cluster Tool Box was presented and the participants had the opportunity to learn about best practices from different project partners and clusters in the Danube Region.

The training ended with the discussion about cluster internationalisation as the main challenge of the European clusters in the future period. 

Author: Croatian Wood Cluster, Croatia