As part of its additional year of activities, TRINNO partners and stakeholders gathered recently to present their final proposed policy changes, aimed at addressing the effects of COVID 19 on traditional enterprises, particularly through digital innovation.
Irish partners WestBIC and the NWRA, along with stakeholders from amongst the Local Enterprise Offices in the Northern and Western region and USEFE, presented its proposals at the Interregional Learning Event in Barcelona in June where the TRINNO consortium met in-presence for the first time since the COVID 19 pandemic. The Irish policy learning initiatives included the new LEO Digital-for-Micro Programme already underway, targeted measures included in the new Northern and Western Regional Operational Programme, due to be finalised shortly, and the potential for inclusion of specific measures in the upcoming Local Economic and Community Plans in each county.
Hosted by the University of Barcelona, the Learning Event included visits to a selection of different support ecosystems for fostering the digital innovation of SMEs in a post COVID-19 era. These included the BIT Habitat Urban Innovation Laboratory and Ca I’Alier – an old, rehabilitated textile factory, now an intelligent building as part of the 22@ District – the Barcelona’s dedicated Innovation District. Other visits included Citilab, a centre for social and digital innovation using the Living Lab approach, where entrepreneurs and business owners relayed their success stories of digital innovation, and the experiences of Creacció, the local development agency in the nearby region of Vic.
All TRINNO project regions presented their final proposals for policy change to address COVID-19 challenges and opportunities and expected next activities. The project, supported by the European Union through the Interreg Europe Programme, will conclude at the end of September, when final results will be reported.
