Pioneering Europe 2020 Smart RegionsUtrecht (Northwing)

turning societal challenges into entrepreneurial opportunities

Jan Wester

Economic Board Utrecht

Northwing

• Utrecht is part of the Northwing region that also includes Amsterdam and Almere.

• 4mln inhabitants• Top 5 economic regions

in Europe

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWj3LnKm5B0

Utrecht(Northwing)

Human Capital

ICT info and infrastructuresServiceinnovation

ICT’s and Media

Services Industry

life sciences Sustainability & greening economy

Economic Board Utrecht

Theme’s

Economic Development Board Almere

Health Life sciences

Creative Industry

Amsterdam Economic Board

crossover

crossover

crossover

Policy mix• Developing Regional Eco-Systems

• Address Societal Challenges to create local value and foster SME participation

• And organise (New) Ownership for sustainability

Citizens/civil society

Government

Business

Knowledge

Business

GovernmentKnowledge

Q-Helix dynamics

Jan Wester 5

Coherent (regional) socio- economic

policies

Smart Specialisation Strategy

Know WhatBusiness,

Civil society etc.

Know WhyGovernment and

public

autorities

Know HowKnowledge institutes

results

knowledge

methods

concepts

evidence

base policy

directions

needsexamples

Implementation of real projects

Organisation of “living labs”

Action Research

Development of methods & tools

Shared “learning curb”

Benchlearning

Structuring and facilitating activities

Big Data in the Amsterdam

Metropolitan Area needs a place!

Jan Wester

The Almere Big Data example of ICT as Smart Specialisation Strategy

Initiatives Policy commitment: 4 year project

Almere DataCapital. Opening an Almere campus for Big

Data with several elements: Almere DataCapital (Policy

Program) Dutch HealthHub (Business and

societal values) Big Data Value Center (to connect

SME’s and Education) Development of the Big Data home

market through Smart Society program (local value)

Campus Almere: connect SME’s and Education

• Data Hubs• Value Center• Big Data Projects• Demonstrotor• Collaboratorium• Incubator• Testfacilities• Training and

knowledge gateway

Big Data Value Center Almere

Main functions:

1. Big Data business (co-creation platform, incubator etc.)

2. Big Data connection (networking/marketing)

3. Big Data learning (education and R&D)

Big data learning

Big data connection

Big data business

Connecting to regional complimentary eco-systems

ADCBig Data

Eco-systeem

H’sumMedia

UtrechtLife

science

A’foort Geo-

cluster

Food valley

A’dam ICT and New

Media

Spinn-off: Dutch Health Hub

Connecting to local developmentsand societal challenges

Collaboration: benchlearningTransformation = learningIn order to cooperate we need to combine tools in a Benchlearning strategy: 1. Local digital/innovation agendas (policy tools) 2. Regional living labs (scientific tools)3. Clear ownership pyramid and co-creating partnerships

(governance tools)4. Benchlearning: Applying a reflective “monitoring and

evaluation” methodology to monitor, validate and learn (feedback tools)

What todo interregionally?• Developing instrumentation on trans-sectoral

“entrepreneurial discovery processes”• Indicators on “resilience” and transactional capacities• Methods for inter-regional validation

local agenda’s

regional living labg

ove

rnan

ce

Reflective monitoring

feedb

ack