On July 3rd, BoostEuroTeQ brought together representatives from different universities and European University Alliances to share best practices and discuss ideas for the future in an online roundtable titled “Enabling and Enhancing Value Co-creation within University Ecosystems”.
Universities play a crucial role connecting all actors within their eco systems – including research institutions, incubators & accelerators, the government, industrial organization, the civil society and more. Their strategic position grants universities the opportunity to foster co-creation in (technology) value creation while shouldering great responsibility.
Against this background, the roundtable hosted by members of the BoostEuroTeQ project aimed to deepen the understanding of universities’ role in enabling and enhancing value co-creation within ecosystems and to provide a forum to exchange best practices and to discuss ideas how the inclusion of universities in value co-creation can be enhanced to address societal challenges. Moderated by Ecem Bilge Delicik, a BoostEuroTeQ member from École Polytechnique, the roundtable brought together universities from different ecosystems and created a trusting environment for benchmarking among the European University Alliances. With Carlos Cuevas Garcia and Lisa Hasenbein (both members of the BoostEuroTeQ project in EuroTeQ, Technical University of Munich), Emrah Acar (EELISA, Istanbul Technical University), Tobias Klima (EELISA, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg), Eduardo Muniz Pereira-Urias (AURORA, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) and Kieran Ryan (ENLIGHT, University of Galway) there were four European University Alliances represented among the speakers and more present in the audience.
The event was truly inspiring as the speakers and audience could witness the power of collaboration in action and the challenges of building a community. Despite having the same overall objectives and working on similar projects, all funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, it was remarkable to see the diverse range of solutions that emerged based on the unique dynamics and challenges within the universities’ respective ecosystems.
As the discussion showed, one of the key take-aways for everyone was the pressing need to bridge the gaps between disconnected stakeholders. All speakers agreed that only by fostering stronger connections and partnerships, the full potential of co-creative innovation can be unleashed. Moreover, it became evident that understanding the various motivations behind collaboration and cooperation is paramount. Recognizing and appreciating the diverse perspectives and drivers of our partners can lead to more fruitful and impactful joint initiatives.
Moving forward, the universities will continue to strive for inclusive approaches where diverse members of their ecosystems jointly play a pivotal role in driving (technology) value co-creation and addressing societal challenges. As all speakers agreed: The roundtable demonstrated the potential of inclusive and co-creative approaches on the university level.
The roundtable was organised by members of the BoostEuroTeQ project as part of the project’s outreach activities to engage and nurture exchange with other European University Alliances.
