Policy: European Commission Launches Call to Establish Regional Innovation Valleys

The call will support up to 100 regions committed to better coordinating their research and innovation investments and policies and to collaborating on interregional innovation projects.

The European Commission has launched a call for expression of interest to enable up to 100 regions throughout the European Union to become Regional Innovation Valleys (RIVs) in order to strengthen and advance European innovation ecosystems. These valleys will connect all EU territories in order to address Europe’s most significant societal challenges and foster stronger cohesion.

The RIVs are a flagship initiative of the New European Innovation Agenda, which aims to position Europe at the forefront of the new wave of deep tech innovation and start-ups. The RIV scheme will specifically address the innovation divide by harnessing deep-tech innovation. The goal is to identify up to 100 regions committed to better coordinating their research and innovation investments and policies and to collaborating on inter-regional innovation projects.

The initiative builds on over 180 national and regional Smart Specialisation Strategies and, where applicable, on the participation in the pilot action Partnerships for Regional Innovation (PRIs).

Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, said:

“Innovation is Europe’s best response to the challenges of the green and digital transitions. For the first time, Cohesion Policy Funds and the Horizon Europe programme work closely together to support interregional cooperation for innovation. I am looking forward to interested EU regions applying for this important opportunity, to reduce the innovation divide and build a stronger, more cohesive, and competitive Union.”

Regions interested in participating in the RIV scheme are invited to apply by the 18 September 2023 deadline.

(This report was the subject of a ResearchConnect Newsflash.)