The government adopts procurement strategies that motivate suppliers to present advanced, sustainable, and ethically sound solutions, prioritizing those who offer more than just the norm. Sustainability is central to their purchasing decisions, weighing the environmental footprint, societal responsibility, and enduring benefits of procured items. The government proactively engages with innovators and startups early in the procurement cycle, tapping into fresh perspectives on emerging technologies and solutions. To spur innovation, they offer incentives, whether financial, extended contracts, or assistance in regulatory navigation, to suppliers that cater to their specific needs. The outcomes of these procurement efforts are closely monitored and evaluated, assessing their alignment with sustainability objectives, cost efficiency, and overall efficacy. By embracing these procurement practices, the government acts as a catalyst in the innovation landscape, promoting the creation and uptake of pioneering solutions for a sustainable and inventive society.
Author: Dennis Sieperda
The Network Orbiter actively engages with diverse stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem.
To monitor and evaluate the progress and impact of collaborative efforts effectively, innovative evaluation methods are employed, capturing the complexity of interactions and outcomes.By working with the integrated projects, programs and strategic missions, the network orbiter aligns project objectives with broader policy goals and vice versa, ensuring that collaborative initiatives contribute to the overall vision of innovation and sustainable development. By focusing on these dimensions under the government fosters a collaborative and adaptive innovation ecosystem, encouraging knowledge sharing and mutual learning
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The Capitalizer uses cutting-edge evaluation techniques to accurately measure the impact and potential scalability of innovation projects.
Traditional approaches may not fully capture the unique aspects and complexities of innovation, making innovative methods essential for effective evaluation. This means including projects in programs and missions and vice versa. Successful innovation projects are integrated into existing government programs and strategic missions. Aligning project objectives with broader policy goals ensures that innovation becomes an integral part of the government’s strategic agenda, creating a more cohesive and impactful approach. The capitalizer also develops internal capabilities and structures. The government invests in building internal capabilities and dedicated structures to effectively capitalize on innovation projects. This includes fostering a skilled workforce in innovation management, program integration, and knowledge transfer. Establishing specialized units or innovation departments within the government promotes knowledge sharing and best practices.
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The Ambassador actively represents and promotes them at both European Union (EU) and national government levels.
This includes lobbying to highlight the project’s importance and securing financial or policy support. They harness the power of bottom-up narratives, using stories that underscore the tangible benefits of innovation at the community level, effectively conveying the project’s value to the public, investors, and policymakers. The Ambassador also promotes lighthouse projects, exemplary initiatives that demonstrate the promise of innovative and sustainable solutions, ensuring they gain visibility and inspire others. They organize events, expositions, and conferences to present innovative ideas, fostering knowledge sharing and collaborations. By inviting key stakeholders to these events, they enhance networking opportunities. In the Ambassador role, the government is pivotal in advocating for innovation, encouraging partnerships, and highlighting the transformative impact of sustainable projects to a broad audience.
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The Provider plays a key role in ensuring resources and support are readily available.
They identify and allocate government funding specifically designed for innovation endeavors. They also share tried-and-true methods and innovative techniques to boost project efficiency. Furthermore, the Provider aids in fostering collaboration and sharing resources, ensuring a wide range of capabilities are accessible and utilized effectively.
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The Facilitator is instrumental in creating an environment conducive to creativity and novel solutions.
They develop a “Fertile Humus Layer,” where ideas can grow and provide a supportive backdrop for innovation by offering the necessary infrastructure, resources, and backing. This can include government-sponsored funding, incubation centers, mentorships, and networking opportunities. Additionally, the Facilitator crafts the “Dancefloor,” setting up spaces—whether physical hubs or online platforms—where various stakeholders can meet, share ideas, and collaborate. With the “Guerrilla Approach,” they promote out-of-the-box thinking, pushing boundaries and navigating challenges to drive innovation forward. This means supporting experimentation and, when needed, questioning established rules to achieve impactful results.
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The Connector works within the Quadruple/Quintuple Helix framework, to actively bridge academia, industry, government, civil society, and media.
They recognize that involving opinion-makers enhances project visibility and garners widespread support. They masterfully weave together policy-making and project execution, utilizing continuous feedback for swift policy tweaks and tangible results on the ground. The Connector collaborates across all government tiers, from local to international, ensuring strategies and resources are in harmony. They advocate for cross-sectoral collaboration, uniting fields like business, academia, and government, and employ an interdisciplinary mindset to tackle challenges from all angles.
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The leader is deeply committed, inspiring others through their personal dedication to success
They make ethical choices aligned with sustainability and co-design solutions with a diverse range of stakeholders for inclusivity. This leader aligns their innovation strategies with global sustainability goals, like the SDGs and regional Green Deal objectives, and uses “backcasting” to envision and plan for the future. They assemble diverse, skilled teams, creatively leverage resources, and form strategic partnerships. Staying informed with current knowledge and research, they prioritize evidence-based decision-making and continuously monitor and adapt for ongoing.
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Online local pioneer communities
The Energy Academy of Samsoe created an online guide to inspire and empower local communities to think big and become pioneers for sustainable development. It is an excellent resource that is freely accessible and includes an abundance of informative material such as experiences, advice, tools, methods, stories, scientific perspectives and videos.
Visit: pioneerguide.com
Example of strategy 4C:
Educative Tool Development and Diffusion
Educative and training tools can be a powerful means in the diffusion of innovations, stand-alone or as part of larger communication and education activities and programs. They can be of serious nature, like reports, guides, videos and manuals with worksheets, or involve modern social media including websites and more playful games, from modern digital ones to old fashioned cards, which attempt to get the users actively involved. Their orientation can be aimed at different target groups, like students, end-users or involve a train-the-trainer perspective. Local and regional governments are challenged to help innovators in the development and diffusion of such tools, and advise them on potential cooperation with tool developers, from universities to game designers and communication and media consultants. The outcomes of the tool application on another island or field can help to build additional knowledge, in line with a practice-based research approach.
FRYSLAN ACTION PLAN
In the ‘Guide for Action Plan Preparation for Islands of Innovation’ different steps have been indicated to develop an innovation action plan as a program. Look for the action plan on interregeurpe.eu/islandsofinnovation
Action Plan for the Province of Fryslân (NL)
(Outline version d.d. September 2019)
In Fryslan this has resulted in the following policy process and preliminary action plan:
Policy Instrument:
OP Noord –Operational Programme North-Netherlands / Northern Innovation Agenda 2014-2020
Policy Context:
OP Noord promotes innovation and entrepreneurship in the context of societal challenges like climate change, health, food security, water, energy. It stimulates participative innovation and living labs to establish the region as a test bed for innovation. Through the Islands of Innovation project, the province of Fryslân wants to position the Frisian Wadden islands as living labs for sustainable innovation, building on their specific characteristics as isolated, self-supporting natural communities. The islands arelocated on the northern coast of The Netherlands in a vulnerable intertidal zone listed as UNESCO World Heritage List. The small island communities are facing population decline and brain drain, poor accessibility, limited health and education services and strong dependency on tourism. There’s a lack of policy initiative to capitalise on the potential strengths of these islands as self-supporting, independent and creative communities with unique craftmanship and skills in a great natural environment. We propose a cross- sectoral, creative approach to utilise these strengths in a structural way. By approaching whole island communities as a living lab and bringing together entrepreneurs and other stakeholders in innovation projects we aim to boost economic development for the islands.
Policy Learning Process:
The international learning sessions, study visits, good practice exchanges and joint analysis work in Islands of Innovation have all contributed to the development of the regional action plan for Fryslân. This policy learning has been an organic, iterative process. Rather than identifying good practices that can be introduced to our region on a 1-to-1 basis, we have taken bits and pieces of inspiration from every encounter in the project.
THE ACTION PLAN
Based on the needs and opportunities of the islands and the inspiration from the partners, we will implement three actions:
1. The Matrix Table
A seed-money facility (€ 300.000) to accelerate new projects for OP Noord. This facility hasbeen introduced at the initiative of the province and will be further refined in the comingyears (type of change to policy instrument: improved governance).
2. Vliehouse
Pilot project to demonstrate the technical feasibility of making temporary, movable housing units using bio-based materials and local resources on the islands (seaweed, sand, grass) in cooperation between local stakeholders. The project will be delivered withfinancial support from OP Noord. (type of change to policy instrument: new projects)
3. Mission-based Regional Development Approach
Introducing a mission-based approach in cooperation with the Managing Authority of the OP Noord. This will improve implementation of the current OP and inform the strategy of the new OP 2021-2027 (type of change to policy instrument: structural/strategy improvement).
Source: Popma, T. & Tijsma, S. Team Europe, 2019
Example of strategy 8C:
Action Program Design
Obviously, the innovation policy of islands has its normal standard requirements like proper resources (personnel, means, etc.), planning, and projects. However, instead of the initiation and execution of various more or less loose projects, TIPPING considers a programmatic approach essential, building a systematic knowledge position and -as local or regional government- helping to strengthen the regional innovation eco-infrastructure. In such a program, series of projects are well designed as systematic knowledge building blocks, allowingimprovisation and flexibility, while planning takes place via an active system of “reflective practice.”
