Programme: HORIZON EUROPE
General information
COALition (Horizon Europe) intends to strengthen the regional innovation ecosystems in coal-depended areas through the creation of regional excellence hubs and the definition of a joint strategic agenda for sustainable energy so as to facilitate their transition in a just and inclusive way. The regions have been carefully selected (Western Macedonia - GR, Centru - RO, Southeastern - BG) among the under transition EU states that are also characterized as widening, in an attempt to maximize the long-term impact of the joint R&I strategy that will be developed within the project, as those territories are about to amass large amounts of funding and COALition aims to create multiplier effects in the given investments by attracting and mobilizing external investments.
Project starting date: 1 January 2023
Project end date: 31 December 2026
Project duration: 48 months
Partnership
ETHNIKO KENTRO EREVNAS KAI TECHNOLOGIKIS ANAPTYXIS (CERTH), GREECE
2. PERIFEREIAKO TAMEIO ANAPTIXIS DYTIKIS MAKEDONIAS (RDF), GREECE
3. DIMOSIA EPICHEIRISI ILEKTRISMOU ANONYMI ETAIREIA (PPC), GREECE
4. JUST TRANSITION INSTITUTE GREECE (JTIG), GREECE
5. KNOWLEDGE & INNOVATION CONSULTANTSSYMVOULEFTIKI MONOPROSOPI
EPE (KiNNO), GREECE
6. UNIVERSITATEA DE MEDICINA, FARMACIE, STIINTE SI TEHNOLOGIE "GEORGE
EMIL PALADE" DIN TARGU MURES (UMFST), ROMANIA
7. JUDETUL MURES (CJM), ROMANIA
8. REPOM SRL (REPOM), ROMANIA
9. PATRONATUL IMM JUDETEAN MURES (PIJM), ROMANIA
10. ICEBERG PLUS SRL (ICE), PIC 917729126, ROMANIA
11. SOFIA UNIVERSITY ST KLIMENT OHRIDSKI (SU), BULGARIA,
12. AGENTSIYA ZA REGIONALNO IKONOMICHESKO RAZVITIE (SZ REDA), BULGARIA
13. DAVID HOLDING AD (DH), BULGARIA
14. SDRUZHENIE S NESTOPANSKA TSEL ZELENI BALKANI - STARA ZAGORA (GBAL), BULGARIA
15. INSTITUTE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (IICT),
BULGARIA
16. WIRTSCHAFT UND INFRASTRUKTUR GMBH & CO PLANUNGS KG (WIP), GERMANY
Objective
COALition project is aimed at setting up and strengthening representative communities (hubs) of key actors of the quadruple helix in a regional context in the SE domain in the 3 territories. It focuses on advance research & mature technological solutions to facilitate regional transition in the concerned territories. COALition envisages creating new business opportunities for economic development and jobs in the areas to attract entrepreneurial activity and talents and establish favourable environments for investments. Moreover, it aims at increasing the capacities of the working force (researchers, entrepreneurs, employees etc.) in the place-based innovation ecosystems.
Methodology
Project’s pathways towards impact COALITION aims at establishing Regional Excellence Hubs in the 3 selected territories (Western Macedonia - GR, Centru - RO, Southeastern - BG) which are coal dependent and also belong in countries that are characterized as less advanced in terms of R&I performance. Thus, the vision of COALition is to strengthen the regional innovation ecosystems in coal-depended areas in terms of capacities and connectivity and the definition of a joint strategic agenda for sustainable energy to facilitate their just transition to climate-neutral, thriving economies. The project tackles the challenge of building Excellence Hubs in the following unique ways.
Activities
- Design of Joint R&I strategy in Sustainable Energy
- Generation of evidence to underpin the Strategy
- Action and Investment Plan Development
- Design of Pilots and Demonstration Projects
- Measures to increase capacities
- Management and Coordination
- Communication, Dissemination and Exploitation
Results
The project tackles the challenge of building Excellence Hubs in the following unique ways:
- COALition launches a multi-stakeholder participatory procedure to validate the draft R&I strategy with key actors of the 4th Helix in the participating territories, similar to the EDP followed in the definition of the RIS3
- COALition addresses the dual challenge of green & digital transition by focusing on deeptech sector(s) of the SE domain by implementing a market pull rather than a technology push approach.
- COALition contributes to delivering joint coal just transition plans that in most cases require the development or integration of high technology to address specific needs, clear-cut innovation capacities in the regional fabric, modernized infrastructure and investments in R&I activities.
- COALition adopts Key Elements of the SE Innovation systemic approach 14, namely: People, Catalysts and the Innovation Process to accelerate the R&I process in the territories
- COALition deploys technological concepts that address the R&I priorities of the macro-region, to accelerate their commercial deployment to the market. The lab prototypes of these R&I projects have the potential to lead to the design of pilots and demonstrators. Indicative R&I projects have been identified.
- COALition demonstrates and facilitates the replication of these SE systemic solutions in a systemic approach covering technical, commercial socio economic and environmental dimensions that include science, technology and governance components
- COALition establishes favorable environment for investments, creates business opportunities, reinforces entrepreneurial activity & promotes Action & Investment Plans to attract Public-Private investments
- COALition Targets on the People “dimension” delivering capacity building actions to upskill and/or reskill the affected working force in declining, transforming and emerging sectors