Malopolska Innovation Festival
About this good practice
The Małopolska Innovation Festival is a region-wide, annual, one-week undertaking. In fact that is a series of various events organized by the Małopolska innovation stakeholders coordinated by the Małopolska Region under one festival brand. The idea of the Festival is strongly connected with RIS focused on promoting regional smart specialisations.
The brand of the Festival was introduced in 2011 by the Małopolska Region. As a coordinator the Małopolska Region is responsible for organizing call for partners of the Festival, meeting with partners, setting the final agenda of the events, and comprehensive promotion of the Festival as well as preparation of opening conference and discussion panels. The region covers all promotion costs e.g. tv, radio spots, press releases, billboards and outdoor, internet ads, social media, posters, leaflets, etc.
The partners of the Festival are responsible for organizing their events (alone or in cooperation) and covering the events’ costs. The events can be of a different kind (not necessarily cost-intensive, but with interesting message in line with regional smart specialisation) e.g. open days in companies/institutions, workshops, trainings, individual consultations, interactive exhibitions, conferences, street-games, competitions, etc.
In return the region provides with professional promotion of the partners’ events (free of charge for partners) under one brand of the Małopolska Innovation Festival.
Resources needed
• Sufficient pool of R&D and businesses.
• Regional co-ordination.
• One contact person for the Festival partners and one for promotion.
• A room for meetings with partners (or money to hire a place).
• Annual budget (2016): 132 000 EUR.
Evidence of success
• 2011: 7 partners and 9 events
• 2012: 15 partners and 27 events
• 2013: 25 partners and 56 events
• 2014: 34 partners and 116 events
• 2015: 41 partners and 130 events
• 2016: 43 partners and 100 events
• 2017: 43 partners and 94 events (in total 4000 participants)
Potential for learning or transfer
• The idea behind the Festival was to encompass a series of events revolving around innovation (that so far had been a separate initiatives organized by innovation system stakeholders) into one week event under one festival brand.
• The Festival is a good example of co-operation between public sector (regional authorities) and regional SMEs, big companies, science sector.
• The Festival requires strong regional co-ordination and leadership (to trigger the process, to encourage the potential partners, to deal with the Festival’s promotion, to share ideas, to prepare the opening conference and discussion panels).
• The Festival requires strong R&D sector and sufficient pool of businesses with R&D prospects.
• The Festival promotes both innovations and entrepreneurship from the region and the region itself (as a good place for setting new businesses, for co-operation between science and business, for doing research, for exchanging ideas).
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Marshal Office of the Malopolska region