Alpeuregio

Flash News: The Innovation Radar

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Wednesday, 18 April 2018 10:51

On April 10, during the Digital Day 2018 in Brussels, the Commission launched a new tool, called Innovation Radar, with the objective to give visibility to innovative systems and solutions financed by European funds and facilitate their market outlet.

The Innovation Radar is a platform freely accessible via the web or from a Smartphone app that collects innovative systems, products and solutions developed as part of the EU-funded programmes Horizon 2020 (H2020), Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), and Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP). The Innovation Radar aims to promote transparency in the use of EU funds and at the same time enables the various innovations to gain visibility. Indeed, through the platform, they are systematically tracked so that potential investors, entrepreneurs, incubators and accelerators can easily discover them. This facilitates their development and practical application on the market and prevents innovative technological solutions from being overlooked or remaining unused.

Through the Innovation Radar, the Commission wants to demonstrate the concrete value of the European investments and strengthen the Research&Innovation European programme. The Commission is planning to promote the use of the Innovation Radar through agencies for regional and national innovation, to fund and support policies and to facilitate the connection between innovators and investors at all levels (regional, national and international), to support also the development and growth of innovative start-ups.

Several innovative technological solutions carried out by Innovation&Research bodies located in Trentino have been selected and can be found on the platform.

ERRIN Innovation & Investments WG Meeting

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Monday, 16 April 2018 07:59

On April 19, the Representation of the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino hosted the first 2018 meeting of Innovation & Investing working group of ERRIN (the European Regions Research and Innovation Network). The EU Liaison office of the Autonomous Province of Trento is an active member of the Network and co-leads the I&I working group.

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Flash news: European Defence Fund

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Wednesday, 11 April 2018 10:36

 In June 2017 the Commission launched a European Defence Fund, already announced by President Juncker in September 2016 and backed by the European Council in December 2016. The fund establishes 5.5 billion Euro per year to support and coordinate research and innovation in the defence sector, financing collaborative projects that must involve at least three actors from different Member States.

The fund is mainly divided into two sections: the first one concerns the collaborative research and is fully and directly funded from the EU budget (€90 million until the end of 2019 and €500 million per year after 2020), while the second one is due to the co-financing of activities for the development and acquisition of technologies and defence equipment (€500 million in total for 2019 and 2020 and 1 billion per year after 2020 for co-financing of the EU up to 20%, €2 billion until 2020 with a further increase to €4 billion per year after 2020 for projects funded more than 80% by the Member States). The objective is to support Member States' more efficient spending in joint defence capabilities (avoiding unnecessary duplication and liability in the deployability of defence forces), strengthen European citizens' security and foster a competitive and innovative European defence industrial base.

On 9th March 2018 the Commission adopted the working programme for 2018 for the preparatory action that has to be implemented between 2018 and 2020. The resources allocated for 2018 are €40 million of the total €90 million available until the end of 2019. Consequently, three calls of proposals have been opened for projects that must have a duration between 12 and 36 months.

The first call has an indicative amount of up to €12 million and will select one project for the development of a high-performance (re)configurable system-on-a-chip or system-in-package components for defence applications. The objective is to guarantee real-time data processing on which an increasing number of defence applications critically depend upon.

For the second call €5.4 million have been allocated. The aim is to fund one project for the development of a high power laser effector with an output power of well beyond 100 kW and that can operate at a high duty cycle. It should also be able to cope with variable atmospheric conditions and present compact design and size so that it can be mounted on mobile (sea, land or air) platforms.

The third call is aimed at funding one coordination and support action to start the strategic technology foresight and has an indicative amount of up to €1.9 million. The main objective of a long term strategy is to minimize the technological dependence of the EU (including raw materials and basic components for the development of specific technologies).The action must address at least the mapping of current dependencies (possibly down to the raw material sourcing), the identification of technology building blocks for which European technology non-dependence will be crucial and the development of solutions to reduce the risk of military and technological dependence.

The Sophie Scholl Language High School on a study trip in the European capital

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Friday, 23 March 2018 10:25

From 21st to 24th March, the Sophie Scholl Language High School in Trento organized a trip to the European capital, in collaboration with the EU Liaison Office in Brussels of the Autonomous Province of Trento.

On the first day the group of students visited the European Parliament, deepening the understanding of the functioning of this institution and the stages of the process of European unification. At the headquarters of the Representation of the European Region Tyrol - South Tyrol - Trentino a meeting with MEP Herbert Dorfmann was organized: he described his work as a MEP, whereas Valeria Liverini, director of the PAT office presented the role and activities promoted by the Office.

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Considering the group's studies, the program was enriched with a presentation of the work experience of Margherita Franch, currently employed at the European Commission in the DG Translation. The day ended with a lecture by Giuliano Castellan, an EU Council official who focused his presentation on the institutional architecture and decision-making processes of the European Union.

On the second day several visits are planned, including the European Committee of the Regions, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the European Commission.

EU-TIPS: Joint meeting with the stakeholders

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Tuesday, 13 March 2018 13:40

From transport to student exchanges, from agriculture to trade, from culture to health care; many things of everyday life are decided at the European level. For this reason, it is important to be present in the very centre of the European Union where major decisions are adopted.

The Autonomous Province of Trento has had a liaison office with the European institutions in Brussels since 1995. Yesterday, the office took stock of what has been achieved in the previous years, while discussing the challenges for the next European programming period starting from 2021. Invited guests included representatives of the Province of Trento and relevant stakeholders such as FBK, FEM, HIT, Trentino Sviluppo, Federazione della Cooperazione, Università, Associazione Artigiani, Consorzio dei Comuni, Camera di Commercio and ConfServizi-Cispel Trentino Alto Adige.

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The president of the Province Ugo Rossi stressed the necessity to further enhance the effort of the Brussels Office. “We have to raise awareness on the importance of this activity and improve the exchange of experience among all actors involved.” Rossi therefore suggested to implement a system of report that would help to better understand the meaning of commitment at the European level. He called it a sort of “return” that will contribute to counter the negative perception of Europe that many citizens have. Rossi maintained “During the previous years, an important change has occurred because we were used to consider the European resources as something additional. Now, we are obligated to think about them as integral parts of the provincial budget.” According to Rossi this is no minor change. It is therefore necessary to strengthen the programming and coordination tools, avoiding fragmentation to maximize the use of communitarian resources. Rossi concluded: “We must all undertake additional efforts to improve the logic and effectiveness of the system as well as improve our project skills.

The current European budget amounts to approx. EUR 964 billion, corresponding to approx. 1% of the total GDP of the 28 Member States and only approx. 2% of the European Union public expenditure. The exit of the United Kingdom will certainly have an impact on the total amount of the available finances by 2021. In the current budget framework, the Province of Trento benefits from European funding of the structural funds, corresponding approximately to 2.7% of the provincial budget. “During the period 2014-2017, Trentino, a land historically in favour of research and innovation, delivered an impressive performance on the framework program for research and innovation Horizon 2020” - recalled Valeria Liverini, director of the Brussels Office. In September 2017, the funding obtained by provincial stakeholders amounted to approximately EUR 66 million. The success rate of the stakeholders is in line with the European average. Liverini concluded: “The next post 2020 European Programming will put more emphasis on direct management programs with particular attention to the development of synergies between the structural funds and the thematic programs directly managed by the Commission.”

To support this activity, the Brussels Office has undergone a complete change in the last years, becoming a real “hub” not only for the offices of “Gruppo Provincia” but also for the several local stakeholders, for which it offers a series of specialised services.

EU-TIPS: ESPRESSO project meeting 2018

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Tuesday, 06 February 2018 16:09

The meeting will be held on Tuesday 06th February 2018. It is an operative meeting where the project’s partners will prepare for the review meeting. In an effort to leverage the promise of a system approach, ESPRESSO (Espresso – systEmic standardisation apPRoach to Empower Smart citieS and cOmmunities) will focus on the development of a conceptual Smart City Information Framework based on open standards. This framework will consist of a Smart City platform and a number of data provision and processing services to integrate relevant data, workflows, and processes. Based on a detailed requirements-engineering campaign executed in close cooperation with cities, standardisation organizations, administrative bodies, and private industry, the project will identify open standards matching the elicited requirements and will establish a baseline for interoperability between the various sectorial data sources and the Smart City enterprise application platform. ESPRESSO’s approach emphasizes cost reduction and will foster an open market for many actors, avoiding lock-in to proprietary solutions. European Smart City solutions that adopt these prescripts will be raised to the forefront worldwide.

EU-TIPS: Pre-review meeting H2020 UNCAP Project

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Tuesday, 30 January 2018 17:07

UNCAP delivers a platform based on open industrial standards able to create new care & assistance paradigms. The result will be an open source, scalable and privacy-savvy ecosystem ready to help aging people live independently

UNCAP (“Ubiquitous iNteroperable Care for Ageing People “) will make use of solutions and technologies developed in previous research projects to develop an open, scalable and privacy-savvy ICT infrastructure designed to help aging people live independently while maintaining and improving their lifestyle. The final solution will consist of real products that will be made available on the market.

Click here to visit the project website

EU-TIPS: PIE NEWS project mid-term review meeting

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Tuesday, 16 January 2018 17:03

On 16th January the Representation of the European Region Tyrol – South Tyrol – Trentino hosted the H2020 PIE News project meeting. This initiative is promoted in the framework of EU-TIPS as part of the collaboration between the University of Trento and the Brussels EU Liaison Office of the Autonomous Province of Trento.

The PIE News project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant.

Click here to access the project website

**Smart freight pricing for sensitive areas – a proposal from Alpine regions**

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Friday, 12 January 2018 10:47

On behalf of the iMONITRAF! Network we invite you to the political roundtable discussion “Smart freight pricing for sensitive areas – a proposal from Alpine regions” taking place on 23 January 2018 at 18:30 at the Representation of the European Region Tyrol – South Tyrol – Trentino in Brussels.

Please register by contacting This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

For more information, please check the Flyer.

EU-TIPS: Study visit in Brussels on digital innovation for an FBK delegation

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Wednesday, 13 December 2017 11:44

On 12-13 December 2017 the EU Liaison Office of the autonomous province of Trento organised a study visit in Brussels for a delegation of Bruno Kessler Foundation (FBK), in order to discover funding opportunities and other EU initiatives on digital innovation in the industrial sector. The agenda included several meetings with representatives of the Commission, mainly DG Research and DG Cnect, and European association active in the field of advanced manufacturing.  

A group of twenty young people from the Association Social Catena on a visit to the European institutions

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Tuesday, 12 December 2017 15:52

From December 4th to 6th a group of twenty young people from the Association “Social Catena” organized, in collaboration with the Office for Relations with the European Union in Brussels, a trip to the European capital. The group, active on the “destra Adige” territory, participates in a project on Europe developed in collaboration with the Caucasus-Transeuropa Balkan Observatory and co-funded by the Autonomous Province of Trento.
The project consists of a series of meetings designed to offer the participants a deepening of the understanding of various European issues, from the history of the EU, to the European economy, to populism, and concluded with visits to the European institutions.

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The study trip organized in Brussels also allowed a deepening of the understanding of the institutional architecture and of the European decision-making processes thanks to a meeting with Valeria Liverini, Director of the PAT Office. An overview of EU funding opportunities was presented by Emiliano Corà, a policy officer at the Office, while Gabriele Bertolli from the European Commission, DG CNECT, outlined the role of the Commission with a focus on media policies.

The visit ended with a meeting with the MEP Herbert Dorfmann who explained to the participants the work he carries out in the European Parliament, focusing his intervention on the importance of the regional and interregional dimension in the European context.

EU-TIPS: a delegation of young cooperators from Trentino on a visit to Brussels

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Tuesday, 05 December 2017 13:58

The study visit to the European Institutions of the delegation of the Young Cooperators Association of the Trentino Federation of Cooperation took place from 29 November to 1 December in Brussels. The visit is part of the activities of EU-TIPS, the collaboration platform between the Province and the stakeholders of the territory interested in getting to know and taking part in the various initiatives of the European Union. The participation of the Trentino Federation of Cooperation in EU-TIPS was formalized by the protocol of understanding signed between the Province and the Federation on 9 June.

As part of the visit, organized with the support of the EU Brussels liaison Office of the Autonomous Province of Trento, the delegation met with representatives of the Commission and various European thematic networks. Among them, Alfonso Aliberti of the European Youth Forum presented the lobbying and advocacy activities of the network in favor of youth organizations, focusing on the opportunities offered by the programs Erasmus+ and Erasmus for young entrepreneurs. Louis Cousin, of Cooperatives Europe, illustrated several initiatives aimed at promoting the cooperative entrepreneurial model at European level, finally focusing on the launch of the European Young Cooperators Network.

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As far as European policies are concerned, the group met Elena Panichi of the European Commission, DG AGRI who, in light of the recent approval of the new European regulation, spoke about organic crops and their labeling and certification. Always remaining in the agricultural sector, Kahtrin Rudolf, DG AGRI, focused on the Common Agricultural Policy and measures to support rural development, underlining the challenges that this policy must face: from the sustainability of production, to globalization, from the diversity of markets, the need to focus on modern agriculture based on research and innovation.
The meeting with representatives of the Confcooperative Office- Trentino Federation of Cooperation concluded the intense program of visits in Brussels.

EU-TIPS: Trentino SPIN Lab, the first European sport tech acceleration program

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Monday, 27 November 2017 09:17

Trentino SPIN Lab: the first European sport tech acceleration program, was launched by Trentino Sviluppo and HYPE-Sports Innovation on 17 nove,ber. Applications are open until 22 December.

Four partners, three continents, one priority: to support the most innovative business ideas within the sports sector. This is the aim of Trentino SPIN Lab, the first sport tech acceleration program within the European Union. Born from the collaboration between Trentino Sviluppo, University of Trento and HYPE-Sports Innovation, the hub is located in the Italian city of Rovereto and teams up with a wide range of world-famous sports institutions. The program is dedicated to passionate entrepreneurs who want to validate their innovative sport tech ideas and transform them in real business.

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Advanced Manufacturing: Trentino joins the Vanguard Initiative

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Friday, 24 November 2017 11:24

Vanguard Political leaders gathered for high-level discussions with Antoine KASEL, member of the JUNCKER CABINET and high-level representatives from EU Institutions. They announced the signature of the first Memorandum of Understanding between Vanguard Regions and called the EU to join the effort. The meeting provided as well the occasion to ratify the inclusion of the Trentino into the Network.

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EU-TIPS: ERRIN project development week 2017

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Thursday, 23 November 2017 10:21

From 20 to 24 November 2017 it was held in Brussels the Project Development Week organized by the ERRIN network (European Regions for Research and Innovation Network), which the EU Liaison Office of the Autonomous Province of Trento contributed to organize in cooperation with several other European regions. In fact, in light of the publication of the work programme 2018-2020 of the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (Horizon 2020) partner regions and ERRIN scretariat considered important to create opportunities for local stakeholder to build internation partnerships aimed to submit well structured project proposals.

Over the 5-days event several thematic workshops have been held focusing on Horizon 2020 funding priorities. Within each workshop representatives of the Commission and other experts introduced the call for proposals for the 2018-2020 period and contributed to clarify their aim and extent. Simultaneously over 50 roundtables have been set to discuss concrete project ideas preselected by the organizers. In total, over 200 stakeholders took part to the roudtables. This allow participants to exchange information and expertise and to jointly build collaborative project proposals.

Among Trentino's stakeholders representative of the University of Trento, of Bruno Kessler Foundation and of the public administration took part in the event presenting project ideas. 

EU-TIPS: FEM hosted the Workshop "New Financing Opportunities in the Horizon 2020 Societal Challenge 2"

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Monday, 20 November 2017 10:34

On 1 December, a workshop to explore and evaluate the new funding opportunities provided by the European Commission within the Horizon 2020 program for the period 2018-20 was held at the Edmund Mach Foundation in San Michele all'Adige (Trento).

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EUFRUIT Meetings 2017

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Friday, 17 November 2017 08:08

On 14 November 2017, the EUFRUIT consortium met in Brussels at the common Representation of the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino for its yearly General Assembly. EUFRUIT is a multi-layered, thematic network under the Horizon 2020 programme (Project ID: 696337) that aims to bridge the gap between research outcomes and uptake of those results by the sector itself. Also the Research Center Laimburg, from South Tyrol, is part of the consortium. Already halfway through the project, the consortium members collected a large array of best practices and ongoing research efforts on a public Knowledge Platform . Additionally, the platform offers a set of synthesis reports which reflect the current state of play in research along four thematic areas: performance of new varieties and cultivar developments, minimising residues on fruit and in the environment, improving quality during handling and storage, and enhancing sustainable production systems.

The press release of EUFRIT is available here. 

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The winners of the LAMO project on a visit to Brussels

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Thursday, 16 November 2017 10:25

On November 7, a meeting with a group of young people winners of a contest within the framework of the LAMO project (Mountain Participation Conference) was held at the headquarters of the European Region Tyrol – South Tyrol – Trentino. LAMO, an experience of shared design between young people and territories, is aimed at the development of mid-mountain areas.

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The project, which saw the participation of 24 students between university students and young graduates, is designed to gather ideas and design for the enhancement of mountainous regions through the involvement of institutional, university, youth and territorial actors.
For the winners, a three-day trip to Brussels has been organized. On the first day of the visit, the group was welcomed by Valeria Liverini, Director of the EU Brussels Office, who outlined the activities of the office, offering an overview of institutional architecture and European decision-making processes and Emiliano Corà, policy officer, who presented the EU funding opportunities. Then Giacomo Luciani, Seconded National Expert at the DG Environment of the European Commission, spoke about European measures, initiatives and programs for the protection and enhancement of the environment in mountain areas. Finally, the two winning projects “Floating Innovation” (Valli Giudicarie) and 2GiovAzione” (Primiero) were presented.
The study visit continued on November 9th with a series of visits to the European Institutions and the House of European History to end the following day with two meetings: the first with Chiara Bolner, an official at the Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission, who presented the EU policies in support of quality in food production, classification systems and the relationship with the territory and the second with Mirco Tomasi, economic analyst at the Directorate - Economy and Finance, who outlined the decision-making process within the Commission, the Europe 2020 Strategy, and the relations and balances between the Commission and the other European Institutions.

The Milk System - Milk production and marketing in a globalized world

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Monday, 13 November 2017 10:22

On Thursday the 9th November the event "The Milk System - Milk production and marketing in a globalized world" took place at the Representation of the State of Hessen to the European Union. 

The entire report can be downloaded here (in German). 

Successfully concluded the second study visit within the training programmes for Directors of the autonomous Province of Trento

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Monday, 13 November 2017 09:14

From 6 to 8 November 2017 it was carried on the second study visit within the training programme for Directors of the autonomous Province of Trento. In these three days Ms Giuliana Cristoforetti, Director at the Institutiona and Legislative Affairs Department, and Mr Alessio Bertolli, deputy Director of the Civic Museum of Rovereto, had the chance to collect inputs and information on ways to support the strategic initiatives of the department. 

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