Interview with Marc Pattinson, board member of the secretariat of the European Cluster Alliance (ECA)
The European Platform of Cooperation and Support for Clusters
"We want to develop
and test new
initiatives and incentives
for cluster excellence and
internationalization"
|
|
What is the European Cluster Alliance?
The European Cluster Alliance (ECA) is an open platform that encourages dialogue and transnational cooperation between national and regional policy makers to improve policies and manage cluster programs in their countries.
Who are the members?
ECA currently has about 120 members. These fall into four main groups:
• Those responsible for national and regional design and funding of cluster initiatives;
• National cluster networks, the initiative of France Clusters;
• Networks to promote clusters that bring together actors from the same subject area, for example, those related to medical devices, aerospace, etc.
• Responsible for EU policies in the different DGs.
What are your goals?
ECA aims to develop and test new initiatives and incentives for the excellence and internationalization of clusters. ECA is part of the tactics of the INNO-Net project funded by DG Enterprise.
What characteristics should members of ECA meet?
The main features of the ECA community are:
• A community of actors with common interests and a common fund (the development of cluster policies and cluster initiatives funding);
• The desire to develop internationalization initiatives, to exchange information and learn from others;
• A long-term commitment to make policies for clusters at national and regional levels, as shown by the launch of new policies and evaluation of existing programs;
• A strong desire to develop, improve and test new ideas, such as INNOVATION Express
• The determination to use cluster policies and clusters as tools to strengthen national / regional economies, support sectoral strategies, channel RDI and improve levels of competitiveness and innovation in cluster actors (SMEs, research): a tool to support a holistic approach.
What is your assessment of ECA since its founding in 2006?
Since its launch in 2006, ECA has grown from a wide network of about 40 regions into a strong network of 120 member associations.
It has launched a series of experimental activities, such as Innovation Express, and has worked with the TACTICS project to produce manuals and policy statements. It has also organized a series of thematic workshops and large-scale cluster events aimed at uniting the political actors of clusters to share good practice. It has also developed close working relationships with other cluster networks, such as the European Cluster Observatory and the European Cluster Collaboration Platform.
What are the benefits of membership?
ECA members benefit from:
• Early access to EU documents related to cluster policy and other reports
• Participation in regular thematic workshops (exclusive to ECA) to exchange and develop best practices
• Test and implement cooperation actions with other funding organizations clusters (through TACTICS)
• Promote "group policies" through the ECA website and newsletter
• Some EU calls are only open to members of ECA
• Participation in the development of EPA manuals and reports, such as the Handbook of internationalization.
• Networking and partner search for EU projects
What areas can Clusters or other entities associated with Madrid Network collaborate in?
Cluster policymakers in the Madrid region have access to all services. They can also provide case study material for inclusion in the manuals and final ECA reports.
They can also host events to allow other ECA members to discover cluster programs under development in Madrid. Through these activities they can develop new collaboration opportunities, for example through INNOVATION Express.
What are the biggest challenges for 2012?
The end of 2012 will end the current funding program, so next year will be crucial to find a new sustainable business model. The Sophia Antipolis Cluster Forum presented a series of alternative business plans.
In addition, ECA will complete a series of important results and reports, and on this basis there will be a responsible political vision on current cluster initiatives in the form of a communication from the ECA to the clusters.
Members of ECA, therefore, have an important role in the future cluster policy agenda of the EU under the Eighth Framework Programme and the new Structural Funds program 2014-20.