On October 16th, 79 people from 17 countries gathered to learn about and celebrate key achievements from the project, as well as hear about future directions for cluster policies in partner regions.

The CLUSTERIX 2.0 partners showcased their key learnings and actions on the topics of empowering cluster management, innovation services for SMEs and the role of clusters in public-private innovation. Video summaries highlighted how the partners learned from each other and applied various good practices in their own regions. In addition, each topic included participant’s input on poll questions and panel discussions with CLUSTERIX 2.0 partners.

The virtual discussion across the three topics highlighted two main messages:

- Through stronger engagement in interregional learning, platforms for exchange between clusters, and joint development processes, clusters have become more active partners in policy implementation (moving from a focus on funding/transactions to more strategic relations)

- In the future, it will be increasingly important to develop longer-term strategic partnering and shared ownership (between clusters and policymakers – across policy areas) in order to realise common objectives for the recovery and transformation of broader innovation ecosystems.

Video record of the Clusterix 2.0 final event: