Very happy to see our analysis of the Regional Innovation Valleys call published by JRC with a great team led by Solange Mifsud and Thomas Zacharewicz in response to the European Commission's DGRTD request.

My main reflection is that, as usual, strategy must precede funding. The most successful regions were those that had their own regional strategy and a mobilisation of innovation actors in the thematic (usually associated with S3 priorities). An extra point has been to have previous collaborative relationships with European regions (trust), given the complexity and requirements of the call. After that, time and cofunding constraints appear.

Although there are doubts about the RIV brand, and a moment of uncertainty about S3 and national plans, interregional collaboration in European ecosystems remains, to my view, essential for regional competitiveness and innovation, so totally in favour of RIVs growing in dimension and ambition in the future, keeping the current cohesion awareness features.

Many thanks to the regions participating in the case studies (which I cannot mention due to confidentiality), and to all colleagues who filled in the survey.

LINK TO THE REPORT: https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC142545