II. Innovation and Technology Transfer

Strategy and Policy Development at European, National and Regional Level

In 2008 ARC Fund successfully expanded its portfolio of activities in support to policy formulation and implementation in research and innovation at national and European level:

• Innvation.bg is ARC Fund’s landmark innovation policy report published annually since 2004. It provides the most reliable and internationally cited assessment of the innovation performance of the Bulgarian economy and the current conditions and development opportunities of the Bulgarian innovation system. The report provides recommendations on improving the public policies on innovation, building on the latest international theoretical and empirical studies and taking into account the specific economic, political, cultural and institutional framework of the innovation system in Bulgaria. The report targets the country’s leaders and decision-makers in the public and private sectors. Innovation.bg 2008 reviewed the challenges and opportunities Bulgaria was faced with in view of the broad innovation policy of the European Union. The report had a high policy impact. The Bulgarian Prime-Minister discussed some of its findings at the Fifth National Innovation Forum held on 7 th February 2008 in Sofia and agreed with the report’s recommendation that Bulgaria should adopt a single, integrated science, technology and innovation strategy. Innvation.bg examines the dynamics in the performance of the national innovation system based on a special Innovation Index of the Bulgarian Enterprises comprised of five groups of indicators:
• gross innovation product;
• entrepreneurship and innovation networks;
• investment in and financing of innovation;
• human capital for innovation;
• information and communication technologies (ICT).

The National Innovation Forum is an annual high-profile public-private partnership involving the World Bank and the Ministry of Economy and Energy, bringing together all major innovation stakeholders to endorse the findings the Innovation.bg report and showcase and acknowledge the most innovative Bulgarian companies by the Innovative Enterprise of the Year Award. The award recognises enterprises for successfully introducing innovations or scientific inventions, or successfully transforming their business operations to achieve sustainable economic effect. The 2007 awards were presented by the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev and the World Bank Representative to Bulgaria, Mr. Florian Fichtl.

• ARC Fund is the national correspondent for Bulgaria since the establishment of the ERAWATCH initiative in 2004 and full member of the ERAWATCH Network across Europe – the network that provides European leaders with intelligence on research and development across the Union. In 2008 ARC Fund prepared a country report on R&D policies in Bulgaria and maintained the ERAWATCH database templates on science and research in Bulgaria.

• The CIVISTI ini tiative involves seven European countries: Denmark, Finland, Belgium, Malta, Bulgaria, Hungary and Austria, under the coordination of the Danish Board of Technology. As citizens are the carriers of concerns and expectations for the future, CIVISTI is designed to give them an opportunity to define and communicate their visions and transform these into relevant long-term scientific, technological and innovation issues. The expected impact is an enhancement of the European foresight capacity and the establishment of a new concept for citizen participation in long-term foresight.

• Through its consulting arm, ARC Consulting, ARC Fund provides high-value added services in the field of innovation policy-making to the Bulgarian government and the European Commission. It leverages the vast practical experience and research prowess of ARC Fund. In 2008 ARC Consulting:
• Prepared and submitted to the National Innovation Council the 2007 National Innovation Report commissioned by the Bulgarian Ministry of Economy and Energy. The report forms the basis for developing the country’s annual innovation policy;
• Won a competitive tender on preparing a EU Commission - Institute for Prospective Technology Studies (IPTS) research report on Public and Private Investments in ICT R&D in Bulgaria and Romania. This will be a comprehensive study on research and development trends and investments in the two country’s information and communication industries. The study will form the basis for European Commission policy initiatives towards Bulgaria and Romania.
• Won a competitive tender on behalf of the ERAWATCH network on the implementation of a transnational study for 16 EU regions commissioned by IPTS. The study is focused on the contribution of regional policies to the European Research Area. The study focuses on three specific domains of ERA: mobility of researchers, opening up of regional R&D programs to foreign European-based researchers, and joint R&D initiatives among the regions. The expected impact of the study is threefold: to support research policy formulation through exploring and analyzing the policies at the regional level, develop indicators which monitor the integration of the EU regions in the ERA, and support research policy learning through studying the nature of research-driven clusters in a selected number of regions.

In 2008 ARC Fund released the second volume of a unique collection of theory and practice texts on innovation and economic development: “Innovations: European, National and Regional Policies”. The first book titled “Innovation: Policy and Practice” was published in 2004. The second volume analyzes innovation developments in Bulgaria in the context of Bulgaria’s EU accession. Several established foreign researchers co-authored the book, together with authors from Bulgarian universities, the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, NGOs and industrial associations. The Ambassador of Germany to Bulgaria H.E. Mr. Michael Geier, and the Bulgarian Minister of Finance, Mr. Plamen Oresharski were guests of honour at the launching ceremony. The second volume, similar to the first one, quickly attracted significant interest from the community of practitioners and positioned itself as a ‘must read’ reference for all academic courses on innovation management.

At Bulgarian regional level, in 2008 ARC Fund completed the development of the Regional Innovation Strategy for the South-West Planning Region of Bulgaria ( RIS BRIDGE). The RIS was the first step made by the region towards streamlining its regional innovation policy. This action should prepare the region to successfully work with the Structural Funds that opened to Bulgaria upon accession in the EU and to gain capacity to shape its desired future.

The RIS process was largely grounded on continuity of consensus-building actions and events and strong outreach to stakeholders at all levels of policy- and decision making. The RIS BRIDGE Steering Committee was chaired by the regional governor of Sofia and gained clear commitment by regional and local authorities, relevant ministries, prominent research institutions and intermediary organizations. The RIS was adopted by the regional governors of all the districts forming the South-West region of Bulgaria. Networking at national level was assisted by ARC Fund’s initiative to set up a National Network of RIS Regions. Bulgaria is one of the few countries amongst the 12 new EU member states whose whole territory has since mid-2005 joined the Innovating Regions in Europe Network.

The RIS BRIDGE Action Plan is now being put into practice. A number of key pilot projects intended to boost regional innovation are currently under development:

• The District of Blagoevgrad developed a project under the South-East Europe Cooperation Programme, with the region of West Macedonia in Greece, for exchange of good practices in the field of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Sources (EE and RES), and for adapting them to the local specifics. This is the preparatory step towards setting up an Innovation Centre in the EE and RES domain in Blagoevgrad as the region has high potential to use solar and thermal water energy, along with other alternative energy sources. The EE and RES Innovation Centre is a public-private initiative widely supported by the regional and local authorities.
• For the Districts of Sofia City and Pernik the RIS resulted in scoping a Technology Centre in Health Design and Innovative Solutions. The Technology Centre is also to be a public-private establishment, bringing together business, banks, health-care centres and representatives of the research community.
• The District of Pernik is planning to establish an Industrial Zone for prospective innovative companies from the machine building industry.

All these pilot actions intend to explore the funding opportunities under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) within the “Regional Development” and “Competitiveness” Operational Programmes.

At international regional level (Eastern Europe and Central Asia) ARC Fund co-organized a high-profile policy event on Advancing Innovation in ECA 2008: Role of Business Incubators in Innovation Development in Small and Medium Sized Towns and Rural Areas, on 9 – 11 October 2008 in Tambov, Russian Federation. The event was the annual conference of the Eastern European and Central Asian Business Incubators and Technology Parks Network (ECABIT) - a sub-regional grouing part of the global infoDev World Bank network of incubators , of which ARC Fund is also a member since 2007.

Support to SMEs

At the beginning of 2008 ARC Fund was entrusted with the important role of coordinating the Bulgarian consortium of the Enterprise Europe Network – the successor to the European Innovation Relay Centres and Euro-Info Centres – the two largest European networks aiming to assist SMEs in raising their innovation capacity and competitive edge across Europe. Later during the year, ARC Fund was also elected to be the coordinator of the ECABIT network, which provides a unique window of opportunity for ARC Fund to serve as a bridge between the two largest global innovation and business incubators networks, and to assist Bulgarian SMEs not only internationalize their business within the EU and EEN countries, but to include target markets of ECA region as well.

For over 10 years since official launch in 1997, the Innovation Relay Centre-Bulgaria (IRC-Bulgaria) - ARC Fund’s SME support unit – has provided value-added services in promotion of trans-national technology co-operation. IRC-Bulgaria has supported trans-national technology transfers to local clients by addressing capability deficits and helping Bulgarian SMEs take home the full benefits of cooperation through counselling on successful technology transfer agreements.

In January 2008, IRC–Bulgaria, together with 12 other partnering organisations, was awarded the European Commission’s bid for launching the Enterprise Europe Network in Bulgaria(EEN–Bulgaria). The Network is a “one-stop-shop” for the information needs of SMEs and companies across Europe. The Enterprise Europe Network is unique both in terms of its wide geographic reach, and of the wide range of integrated services it provides to SMEs and other business actors. This is made possible through the coordinated action of nearly 600 local partner organizations, employing around 4000 experienced staff working to support the competitiveness of EU businesses.

In line with the global trends in the field of technology transfer and innovation in 2008 ARC Fund focused its efforts on Energy Efficiency, Environment, Ecology, Transport, Textile, Foods and Media. The emphasis on these thematic areas also supported the growing interest of Bulgarian research organizations and companies.

In 2008, ARC Fund’s EEN-Bulgaria team managed to enlarge its clients’ database in the sectors of energy efficiency and wastewater treatment, and collected first-hand knowledge about the practical and urgent needs and goals of Bulgarian companies and research organisations active in these sectors. Through such efforts over 40 Bulgarian companies received focused assistance in developing their capacity to innovate and were provided with new tools for partner searches and information updates. Over 100 Bulgarian companies and research organizations were introduced to the service of EEN–Bulgaria. Overall, EEN-Bulgaria managed to strengthen its position as a reliable partner to SMEs and researchers working in the energy and environment fields, and attracted 40 new clients from this sector which provides a promising basis for future success stories. IRC Bulgaria and EEN Bulgaria supported eight client companies in signing technology transfer agreements and finding new markets for their innovative technologies and consulted parties in the signing of two agreements for cooperation between local and foreign companies.

To better meet the needs of its client companies ARC Fund organised more than 10 information and match-making events for SMEs and represented clients in various other events:

- European Partnering Event in the field of energy efficient buildings and renovation technologies on 8 th March 2008 in Stuttgart. The event was held in parallel to the International Trade Fair for Renewable Energy & Energy Efficient Building and Renovation. Two Bulgarian companies participated in this event.

- International exhibition of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources held in April 2008 in Sofia. The exhibition, organised by the City of Sofia and supported by the European Commission, provided an opportunity for the EEN–Bulgaria consultants to make new contacts and promote upcoming domestic and international events in this field.

- Water and renewable energy sources thematic meeting was organised by the EEN–Bulgaria consortium partner – Chamber of Commerce and Industry-Dobrich,on 28 th May 2008. A total of 39 participants attended the meeting, representing SMEs, large companies and research institutes.

- Technology Brokerage event in the field of energy efficiency and environment was organised in the framework of the Plovdiv Technical Fair 2008 with the support of the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bulgaria, ENEA–Italy and jointly with EEN partners from Germany, Greece, Macedonia and Romania. The event attracted 27 companies and organizations from Bulgaria and facilitated meetings between 74 companies and organisations from 6 countries; 72 technology profiles were submitted and 160 bilateral meetings were carried out. As a follow-up to the initial contacts made at the brokerage event two technology transfer agreements were signed – between a Greek company and two Bulgarian companies.

- Several workshops and training sessions for business women focused on issues related to internationalising a business or doing cross-border research within the 7 th Framework Programme. Participants could upgrade their capacity on how to participate in FP7, how to develop and submit a research profile, how to draft a technology offer or request, and how and where to launch a partner-search for new project development or technology transfer. The workshops covered a diversified range of topics, including ownership and intellectual property, raising capital for business expansion, identifying and contacting potential business or scientific / technology partners.

-ARC Fund could extend its network of small and micro-enterprises (SmEs) through the organisation of capacity building seminars on specific issues ranging from clustering, globalisation / internationalisation, intellectual property, financing, and competitive intelligence /information retrieval. A methodological FP7 guide “From idea to project” was produced in Bulgarian language. The training series covered a total of 152 Bulgarian SmEs, a section of which could also benefit from additional services – e.g. 20 technology audits, 20 action plans and 10 technology dossiers resulting in 5 success cases of SmEs which demonstrated a practical implementation of new, or upgraded capacity acquired within this project.

- ARC Fund conducted technology workshops with 12 Bulgarian SMEs in the media sector. Specific technology development roadmaps were prepared based on the specific needs and technology plans of the companies. Their profiles were also included in an international online match-making platform for searching R&D partners to develop joint projects under FP7.

Future Oriented Thinking

Since 2001 ARC Fund has been developing its institutional capacity in futures oriented thinking, starting with the ForeTech project – Technology and Innovation Foresight for Bulgaria and Romania, which successfully introduced the foresight approach as a new policy making tool in science and innovation policy development. The foresight was piloted for e-government and biotechnology in Bulgaria. Since then ARC Fund has contributed to a number of projects at the EU level applying the foresight methods in areas such as research infrastructures, food quality and safety, citizens’ engagement in the formulation of research priorities of the future.

In 2008 ARC Fund partnered in the FutureFood6 project which employed the foresight approach at the sectoral level. FutureFood6 was focused on the whole value chain of the agri-food industry of Central and South-Eastern Europe. It brought into a network more than 500 experts and stakeholders in the agri-food domain across six countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, who discussed the future of the agri-food industry by 2020. Under the umbrella of this project the key technologies and the roadmapping methods were applied for the first time to the agri-food domain in Bulgaria. More than 120 experts and stakeholders were engaged in the implementation and participated in the key technologies survey and the technology roadmapping exercise. The key technologies survey identified 11 technological areas which the experts and stakeholders considered of utmost importance for the growth of the national agri-food industry until 2020. The project engaged experts from the Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The experts from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food participated in the final conference of the project. An agreement was reached between the Ministry and ARC Fund to continue the collaboration with ARC Fund in broadening the application of the foresight approach in the agri-food domain in Bulgaria.