Startups – Page 3

IFI attends the IV National Congress of Entrepreneurial Scientists

Our Member of IFI Innovation Council, Juan Mulet participates in the panel ‘Innovation 6.0’ in the IV National Congress of Entrepreneurial Scientists in Barcelona, 24-25 February 2017. The event represents an inflexion point of entrepreneurial innovation ecosystems in our country.

Its goal is to encourage the creation of scientific and technological based companies, to promote the figure of the scientific entrepreneur, to create synergies between the different agents involved in the sector and to inspire the coming generations, in charge of building the future knowledge society.

More information

Building Regional Foresight Capability in Chile

The co-founder of IFI, Totti Könnölä co-authored the European Foresight Platform brief on the foresight programme, of which overall objective was to enhance innovation-driven sustainable economic development of the Antofagasta region in Chile. The main purposes of the foresight
were to:

improve the foresight capability in the region, especially for the partner organisations,
enhance collaboration between the industry, government and research organisations and
support the creation of a strategic research agenda for the region on a topic chosen by the partner organisations.

Building Regional Foresight Capability in Chile (pdf)

People, Places & Policies: promoting systemic innovation and a stronger entrepreneurial culture in Europe

Innovation and entrepreneurship are key drivers for economic growth and competitiveness. While recent policies also aim at promoting sustainability and better governance, many analysts have pointed to Europe’s inability to create a suitable environment in which a vivid entrepreneurial culture could flourish.

The event, organised by the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) in partnership with the European Parliament, will be hosted by Eva Paunova MEP on 27th April 2016 at the European Parliament. The event intends to validate a new report from CEPS on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Europe: People, Places and Policies, the result of a six-month Task Force involving authoritative scholars, industry experts, entrepreneurs, practitioners and representatives of EU and international institutions.

Insight Foresight Institute (IFI) has played pertinent role in this taskforce chaired by José Manuel Leceta (Chairman of IFI). Furthermore, Totti Könnölä (Managing Director of IFI) has acted as a co-rapporteur. We highly appreciate that some of the board and council members have also participated in the taskforce meetings.

The outcome is a set of policy recommendations that aim at improving the overall environment and approach for entrepreneurship and innovation in Europe, and a new understanding of the role that “people, places and policies” can and should play within the current context of the European Union. More specifically, the CEPS Task Force agreed upon three key principles: future EU policy for entrepreneurship and innovation should be systemic, simple and, more importantly, tied to societal needs.

For full Agenda click here

Registration click here

(Re)searching the critical ‘meso’ level: learning innovation agencies and entrepreneurial ecosystems

Insight Foresight Institute organises a special track in the 2016 Annual Conference of the EU-SPRI Forum, organised in Lund, Sweden, June 7-10, 2016.

Track theme 6:(Re)searching the critical ‘meso’ level: Learning innovation agencies and Entrepreneurial ecosystems
The ‘meso level’ efforts of learning innovation a agencies are to play a new and increasingly important role: from ‘funding and coordination’ to ‘facilitation and orchestration’ of entrepreneurial ecosystems. Herein, further understanding is needed to advance the theory and practice of:
-innovation agencies in experimenting new instruments
-open innovation schemes like IP licensing, open-source platforms and partnerships
-capital investments and corporate and university venturing
-foresight, intelligence and learning within innovation agencies

In addition to paper presentations on these topics a panel session will be organized with Jose Manuel Leceta, Totti Könnölä, Dan Breznitz, Göran Marklund (tbc), Jakob Edler and Albert Bravo-Biosca. Please contact: totti.konnola@if-institute.org for further information about the Track Theme.

Special Track 2016 EuSPRI _Agencies and Ecosystems (pdf)

Call for Abstracts, Deadline March 8, 2016

http://www.euspri-circle2016.org

E2 I2 Forum – Education + Entrepreneurship + Innovation + Investment

A new coalition is set to create an innovative ecosystem in Spain. The Royal Academy of Engineering sponsors the Forum E2 I2, to unite innovation actors with allies including RedEmprendia, la Fundación Transforma España, el Foro de Empresas Innovadoras and European Institute of Innovation and Technology.

The Royal Academy of Engineering together with the experts of Insight Foresight Institute (IFI) coordinates the Forum E2 I2 + Education + Entrepreneurship + Innovation + Investment, a meeting point of experts from member companies and the world of academia seeking to address the major challenges in these areas in a coordinated manner.

“This is to encourage understanding what’s working and what must be improved,” says Elijah Ferreres, president of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

“Now we have an opportunity to do different things. The ecosystem allows us to guide new policies, in academia and in the corporate world, “explains Senen Barro, president of the RedEmprendia.

“This is to introduce innovation beyond the ICT sectors such as textiles or the food sector, which accounts for over 20% of Spanish GDP, “says José Molero, president of the Forum for Innovative Enterprises. He adds: “we must create a strategic framework with new policies”.

Meanwhile, Eduardo Serra, president of fundación Transforma España, points to the lack of collaboration between the different actors. “In countries like USA exists flexibility and relationship between different sectors. The professors go to companies, etc.. However in Spain there are a great reluctance to produce these relationships.”

José Manuel Leceta, chairman of IFI (director of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology at the time of the forum kick-off) also points to the importance of a comprehensive approach to economic transformation, education and business to promote innovation ecosystem.

For further information: Jose Manuel Leceta