In July 2020, the European Commission published a review of the valorisation policy to highlight channels and tools to boost the transformation of knowledge into new sustainable solutions.
Back in 2018, the Council of the European Union requested the Commission to write such a strategy in order to accelerate knowledge circulation in the European Union. The investment made into research and innovation (R&I) needs to have more impact in Europe. To make this happen, different actors need to collaborate, including civil societies, public authorities, industries, academia and private investors. This strategy has now been published.
In the factsheet “Valorisation – Making results work for society” published in March 2020, the Commission highlights the need for valorisation to be at the heart of the R&I policy and for collaboration of those actors.
It presents the six following channels with each their own toolbox:
- Academia-industry joint research mobility: to translate knowledge into industrial results and provide academics with industrial insights.
- Creation of research-driven spin-offs and start-ups: to convert learnings into entrepreneurial projects and providing funding.
- Intermediaries and knowledge transfer professionals support: to bring solutions, products and services into the market so that they will be actually used.
- Engagement of citizens, public bodies and societal actors: to make sure that solutions created have a real impact on society and citizens.
- Intellectual property and management standardisation: to ensure an advantage to creators and make their products more accessible.
- Knowledge dissemination and policy uptake: to spread the knowledge acquired and create informed policies.
Moreover, the report highlights best practices within the EU in order to understand how this guidance is translated into actionable solutions. These best practices are described for each channel and each tool. For instance, for the academia-industry joint research and mobility, the report highlights Portugal’s collaborative laboratories CoLAB. These are non-profit private associations or companies consisting of a company and a research & development unit as well as a higher education institution, linking public research to industry activities and financed for at least 50% by private funds. For more information please consult the policy review.
The Advanced Technology for Industry (ATI) project provides a mapping of Technology Centres on its website with detailed knowledge and experience in the 16 defined advanced technologies. These Technology Centres are potential innovation partners and sources for knowledge sharing.