Report on cluster- specific societal, geographical, economic and environmental

Chapter 1. Introduction presents the structure of the deliverable and the link with the task 2.3. Chapter 2. Profile and expertise of cluster members provides information on the profiles of the three clusters’ members, organisations that are key actors of the Research and Innovation (R&I) regional ecosystems and joined forces to co-create more responsible approaches to innovation in their territory. Each cluster is composed of a leading organisation (Fondazione Giannino Bassetti in Lombardy, Science for Change in Catalonia and BE participation in Brussels-Capital), specialised in RRI processes including: policy recommendations, coordination of participative processes in R&I and science engagement, multistakeholder (quadruple helix) engagement and citizen engagement. Each cluster also involves representatives of the regional government and/or a public agency in charge of R&I for the region and responsible for the coordination and the monitoring of regional Smart Specialisation Strategies (Regione Lombardia in Lombardy, Generalitat de Catalunya - GDPECR in Catalonia and Innoviris in Brussels-Capital). Each cluster involves an additional partner for the representation of the quadruple helix and local key actors for the effectiveness of quadruple helix participative processes: Finlombarda – Finanziaria per lo Sviluppo della Lombardia S.p.A. - a financial company owned by Regione Lombardia, Opensystems, a research group founded by the University of Barcelona and the Earth and Life Institute (ELI), a research institute of the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) in Belgium. Chapter 3. Research and Innovation ecosystems in the TRANSFORM regions presents the information gathered by each cluster and the work done so far at each cluster level. For the Lombardy region, the main activities have been related to Participatory Research Agenda Setting in the design of the PST; Citizen Engagement in S3 (implementation); and Regional RRI performance experimental evaluation. The main outputs are online mutual learning exercises to identify and map RRI activities of the Region, embedment of RRI in objectives of the next S3 plan and design and implementation of a capacity building exercise. For the Catalonia region, the main activities were to define the role of the local Think Tank which was launched in June 2020 to reflect on the potential of RRI and citizen science, and an overview analysis of R&I Catalan ecosystem. For the Brussels-Capital region, the main activities were to define the role of thei local Think Tank to support the cluster’s pilot activities and to help with the assessment of R&I activities looking at the impact on the local public good; an overview analysis of R&I Brussels-Capital ecosystem; and a reflection process with the cluster members exploring the broad topic of circular economy, preparing the work of analysis of community needs and challenges to address. In addition, each cluster presents the latest development of Smart Specialisation Strategies and regional R&I programmes, as all three regions are in the process of renewing their S3 plans. Chapter 4. Results of SWOT analysis presents the outcomes of the regional SWOT analysis run in each cluster, as well as what has emerged from the collaborative Map & Reflect workshop. The objectives of the SWOT analysis at each cluster level were to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that the cluster could encounter to achieve the overall objective of the project taking into account the regional contexts; develop strategies to anticipate negative elements; identify skills possibly needed to support clusters’ members; reflect on directional possibilities of the project within the S3 and RRI framework. The SWOT analysis carried-out at each cluster level is presented in the deliverable. For Lombardy, the strengths include the fact that the regional authority is dedicated to RRI, is reflexive and willing to listen to multistakeholders’ voices; and a long list of concrete strengths directly connected to RRI actions or dimensions. The weaknesses have been turned into suggestions for actions e.g. to include RRI terminology in the regional R&I calls and introduce a budget for public communication in the R&I regional calls. Opportunities include two main groups: opportunities connected to RRI in general; and specific opportunities for the Lombardy Region. Finally, two general risks have also been identified including the understanding of RRI for industrial partners and the challenges of citizen engagement. In Catalonia, the strengths include several elements on the already good uptake of RRI by the regional authority and the dynamism and quantity of citizen science initiatives in the region. As per the weaknesses, the elements are grouped in themes including the elements related to RRI (lack of knowledge and measurement in the region); to quadruple helix engagement (lack of platforms and participatory tradition); and to citizen science. The opportunities include the integration of RRI in the next S3 of the region and the diversity of the R&I ecosystem. Finally, the threats involve the COVID 19 crisis, possible resistance of citizens, the government priorities for the economy and the excess of confidence in the results that quadruple helix transformative processes can lead to an early abandonment of initiatives. For the Brussels-Capital region, the strengths include elements related to the cluster composition; the EU dimension of the project; the theme of circular economy & innovation; the methodology; the citizen-centered approach and decision-making & policy formulation. The weaknesses include the scale of the action, limited understanding of large-scale dynamics; making sure the bottom-up approach is really used; and the fact that the work in the field is still in experimentation. The opportunities are related to the dynamic and intense regional social network and the number of potential partners. Finally, the risks are related to the COVID 19 crisis; the project sustainability; and the contradiction between ambition and reality. In addition to the individual cluster SWOT analysis a comparative exercise was carried out collaboratively. Chapter 5. Societal, economic, geographical and environmental frameworks in which the participatory actions will be developed by each cluster. A key step for the TRANSFORM project is to understand the societal needs of the citizens that will be involved in participatory processes as well as the economic, geographical and environmental frameworks of the R&I ecosystems in each of the three regions. The participatory processes in the three clusters will rely on quadruple helix engagement with a particular focus on citizen engagement. To be able to implement these participatory activities, the clusters performed an intensive reflection work to understand the societal needs and the economic, geographical and environmental frameworks particular to their regions and their R&I ecosystem. Some key elements that have an influence on or need to be taken into account in the choice of cluster activities are presented there