Multidisciplinary associations as core players for Catalan S3 (Communities)

RIS3CAT Communities are an essential and innovative element when combining both the necessity of the RIS3 implementation and the development of the Entrepreneurial Discovery Process (EDP). In order to achieve a real transformation of the economic sectors in Catalonia in terms of RIS3 and EDP, it is necessary to join efforts from many different stakeholders, usually with very different perspectives (and in the end they also become beneficiaries of the instrument): companies, business associations, cluster organisations, universities, research centres, technology centres, foundations and institutions linked to R&I, or the public as users, consumers and citizens.The Communities allow the alignment of those stakeholders and different interests through a bottom-up approach and a 2 stage competitive process:
• Grouping the stakeholders in associations with a minimum of 8 different members with a common economic sector or technological sphere and the obligation of launching cooperation projects under the excellence principle.
• Establishing common agendas for the R&I, public sector and production systems in those economic sectors with an operating Community, aligning resources and policies.
• Promoting mid and long-term R&I common programmes based on the feedback and results of the projects launched, integrating visions from different agents, with especial attention to the SMEs as innovation agents.