“In RDI2CluB project business sector has been involved strongly throughout the project. Triple Helix aspect has created a strong foundation for project activities and made sure that all stakeholder groups have received added value from them. It is important to include the end users to these projects to make them even more meaningful, “ Riikka Kumpulainen, JAMK University of Applied Sciences, Institute of Bioeconomy

 

 

RDI2CluB (Rural RDI milieus in transition towards smart bioeconomy clusters and innovation ecosystems), funded by ERDF within the Interreg Baltic Sea Region (BSR) Programme, is a Flagship of the EUSBSR Policy Area Bioeconomy and aims to strengthen the actions and ability in the BSR to create and commercialize innovation. Project team consists of five BSR partner regions - Central Finland, Inland Norway, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship region in Poland, Vidzeme region in Latvia and Estonia. RDI2CluB partnership is based on TRIPLE-HELIX in each partner region: RDI - partner in bioeconomy-related fields, BU - business development body representing SMEs and AU - authority responsible for strategic planning in the region. Each partner has special expertise needed in RDI2CluB.

The challenge behind the project is that bioeconomy business sector (business development bodies and SMEs) of the Baltic Sea Region faces many difficulties, for example in raising awareness of bioeconomy knowledge, information sharing and networking which hinders the economic development of the area. SMEs of our partner regions are mostly in traditional, resource-based industries. Due to few actors, regional knowledge exchange is limited and occurs mainly among local actors.

Our mission is to bring together bioeconomy developers throughout the rural areas of Baltic Sea Region to a joint table to solve global and local challenges with bioeconomy innovations. Our aim is to share ideas, find partners and work together to create business opportunities in bioeconomy via open virtual bio business hub, also known as Biobord-platform. Biobord platform is the solution to harness our SMEs untapped development potential and support the creation of new bioeconomy innovations. Together we build knowledge and raise awareness of the potential of bioeconomy. To enable international co-operation, we created Biobord platform that was tested and piloted in several phases throughout the RDI2CluB project.

 

 

RDI2CLUB EXPERIENCE IN INVOLVING BUSINESS SECTOR IN THE PROJECT:

HAVE A SPECIFIC ROLE FOR THE BUSINESS SECTOR IN YOUR PROJECT

Business sector has been involved in all stages of RDI2CluB-project, but their role is emphasized in the development of smart bioeconomy clusters/innovation ecosystems and in the joint transnational piloting by being part of the developing process of our Operating Model for Innovation Management and Biobord-platform (3 BU-partners of RDI2CluB).

 

ORGANISE EVENTS FOR BUSINESS SECTOR

Business-sector has also acknowledged in other RDI2CluB activities, such as joint workshops and benchmarking trips.

 

FIND THEIR SPECIFIC NEEDS AND DEVELOP A PERSONALIZED SOLUTION

One concrete example of including a business sector to bioeconomy innovation is our regional pilot case from Central-Finland where we have piloted and created a mobile application based on the needs of SMEs that combines services and workforce in rural Central Finland.

 

ASK FOR AN INPUT

The input of the business sector has been important for producing the main outputs for the project, but also to get information of future possibilities of transnational networking and cross-cluster learning.

 

ANSWER THE QUESTION: IN WHAT WAYS THE BUSINESS SECTOR WILL BENEFIT FROM YOUR PROJECT?

As SMEs are also the end users of the outputs, they will benefit from the development support of new business ideas into innovations, created in RDIU2CluB. Biobord platform and the Operating Model will facilitate the commercialization process, transnational networking and provide opportunities to cross-cluster learning.