Monitoring mechanisms and institutional arrangements for the implementation of place-based innovation strategies through the smart specialisation concept. Evidence from empirical analysis

There is no one-size-fits-all governance model for regional innovation policies. Policy instruments and organizations that support policy implementation can help address socio-economic and environmental objectives, bridging the divide between the generic concept of place-based innovation policy and its implementation in different territorial contexts. This thesis investigates the way a place-based innovation policy concept such as smart specialisation can better fit the reality of the diversity of governance capacities of EU regions. The research question is addressed from two distinct perspectives: on the one hand, the thesis explores the institutional arrangements underpinning place-based policies and smart specialisation design and implementation with the creation of regional innovation agencies. On the other hand, the thesis explores the monitoring activities from the perception of policymakers in charge of the design and the implementation of the innovation strategies. One way to address a regional institutional weakness is through the creation of Regional Innovation Agencies (RIAs). RIAs can be thought of as "one-size-fits-all" institutional arrangements that let organizations enhance their Regional innovation system in a systematic way by designing and implementing a place-based policy. In other words, RIAs can be seen as “adjustment variables”, allowing a generic place-based policy to fit unique territorial contexts. The analysis shows policy implications relevant for any regional innovation system and inextricably linked to the good governance of innovation policies such as smart specialisation. The agency should reflect a shared vision between the public and private sectors. It appears that the most appropriate and effective level of governance for the agency is the metropolitan level, as one single agency in a region would lead to institutional complexity and coordination failures. However, as the agencies studied are very specific to the places in which they are established, the impact on their respective territories should be thoroughly evaluated before deciding if the policy should be replicated in other peripheral regions of the EU. In any case, regional governance with appropriate institutional arrangements equipped with an efficient monitoring system that can collect the needs of stakeholders and capture weak signals coming from outside makes the region more resilient to external shocks. Monitoring is an important component of a strategy for innovation and territorial development. The challenge raised by monitoring activities goes hand in hand with the complexity of the S3 concept itself. Analysis shows policymakers view monitoring as a management tool and a means of communicating with stakeholders. However, this perception may have some limitations when implementing the strategy. So far, the analysis indicates that, while the theory of smart specialisation is well known, converting what should be done in theory into practice constitutes a significant challenge in terms of stakeholder engagement in all phases of strategic management

Frequency Dependence of Aging, Rejuvenation and Memory in a disordered ferroelectric

We characterize in details the aging properties of the ferroelectric phase of K Ta_{1-x} Nb_x O_3 (KTN), where both rejuvenation and (partial) memory are observed. In particular, we carefully examine the frequency dependence of several quantities that characterize aging, rejuvenation and memory. We find a marked subaging behaviour, with an a.c. dielectric susceptiblity scaling as $\omega \sqrt{t_w}$, where $t_w$ is the waiting time. We suggest an interpretation in terms of pinned domain walls, much along the lines proposed for aging in a disordered ferromagnet, where both domain wall reconformations and overall (cumulative) domain growth are needed to rationalize the experimental findings.Comment: submitted to EPJ

When Mass Spectrometry Meets Nanoparticles. Weighing, Manipulating and Fragmenting Single Nanoparticles in The Gas Phase

A new mass spectrometer based on charge detection has been developed. It enables the determination of mass distribution of various macromolecules and nanoparticles. By using an ion trap coupled to a CO2 laser, photoinduced dissociation of such macroions can be studied at the single ion level giving uniquely access to intrinsic features such as fragmentation patterns and unimolecular dissociation activation energy

When Mass Spectrometry Meets Nanoparticles. Weighing, Manipulating and Fragmenting Single Nanoparticles in The Gas Phase

A new mass spectrometer based on charge detection has been developed. It enables the determination of mass distribution of various macromolecules and nanoparticles. By using an ion trap coupled to a CO2 laser, photoinduced dissociation of such macroions can be studied at the single ion level giving uniquely access to intrinsic features such as fragmentation patterns and unimolecular dissociation activation energy

Electrodynamics of Amorphous Media at Low Temperatures

Amorphous solids exhibit intrinsic, local structural transitions, that give rise to the well known quantum-mechanical two-level systems at low temperatures. We explain the microscopic origin of the electric dipole moment of these two-level systems: The dipole emerges as a result of polarization fluctuations between near degenerate local configurations, which have nearly frozen in at the glass transition. An estimate of the dipole's magnitude, based on the random first order transition theory, is obtained and is found to be consistent with experiment. The interaction between the dipoles is estimated and is shown to contribute significantly to the Gr\"{u}neisen parameter anomaly in low $T$ glasses. In completely amorphous media, the dipole moments are expected to be modest in size despite their collective origin. In partially crystalline materials, however, very large dipoles may arise, possibly explaining the findings of Bauer and Kador, J. Chem. Phys. {\bf 118}, 9069 (2003).Comment: Submitted for publication; April 27, 2005 versio

Measuring progress in transnational coordination of research programming in Europe

Cooperation in the EU between Member States and with Associated Countries on national public research programming has received a lot of attention in recent years, and will continue to do so under Europe 2020. This NETWATCH Policy Brief looks at the current policy context and rationales for transnational coordination of research programming, and aims to measure progress made so far in doing so. It looks both at coordination of public national research budgets and at cooperation between nations under the framework programmes, Horizon 2020 and Cohesion policy.JRC.J.2-Knowledge for Growt

ERAWATCH Country Reports 2012: France

This analytical country report is one of a series of annual ERAWATCH reports produced for EU Member States and Countries Associated to the Seventh Framework Programme for Research of the European Union (FP7). The main objective of the ERAWATCH Annual Country Reports is to characterise and assess the performance of national research systems and related policies in a structured manner that is comparable across countries. The Country Report 2012 builds on and updates the 2011 edition. The report identifies the structural challenges of the national research and innovation system and assesses the match between the national priorities and the structural challenges, highlighting the latest developments, their dynamics and impact in the overall national context. They further analyse and assess the ability of the policy mix in place to consistently and efficiently tackle these challenges. These reports were originally produced in December 2012, focusing on policy developments over the previous twelve months. The reports were produced by independent experts under direct contract with IPTS. The analytical framework and the structure of the reports have been developed by the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies of the Joint Research Centre (JRC-IPTS) and Directorate General for Research and Innovation with contributions from external experts.JRC.J.2-Knowledge for Growt

Dataset of projects co-funded by the ERDF during the multi-annual financial framework 2014-2020

Over the 2014-2020 financial period, 451 €bn of ESIF are invested in Cohesion policies, of which more than 40 €bn are dedicated directly to the thematic objective related to research and innovation. Among ESIF funds, ERDF is the main source of funding of Innovation through the implementation of Smart specialisation strategies with a management shared between the Commission and the Regional or national authorities. In this respect the monitoring and the evaluation of ESIF are implemented at regional or national level. At European Commission level, monitoring of Cohesion policy is carried out mainly at operational programme (OP) level, meaning only very limited information is available at project and beneficiaries' level, also with partly low accuracy in terms of geographical information (OP can be national or in some cases multiregional). Reporting at project and beneficiary level is carried out through national or regional databases gathering information on beneficiaries (type of organisation, localisation etc.) and details on funded projects (e.g. titles and abstracts and possibly other additional info depending the territory). Conversely to Horizon 2020 and due to the shared management, a complete structured database of ESIF projects does not exist. While information on ESIF beneficiaries and projects is recorded, this is held by individual regional or national managing authorities. Gathering this information on projects and beneficiaries in a single structured database would greatly benefit policy monitoring and evaluation, and the identification and creation of synergies with Horizon 2020 funding. This database would also feed ex-ante impact assessment analysis for the future multi-annual financial period (2021-2027), for the future cohesion policies and Horizon-Europe programme. The design of a structured and comprehensive database of projects funded by ERDF for the period 2014-2018 is based on the systematic collection of all information available at national and regional levels. The whole content of the database is translated to English (including project titles and abstracts) using European Commission Machine translation tool. The database offers also additional information such as keywords associated to each project in order to be able to bridge easily information contained in the ERDF projects database with, among others, Eye@RIS3 and the Horizon 2020 database. This report explains the origins of the information, the processing of collected information and the proxies used to obtain the most complete and comprehensive picture as possible of what has been supported through ERDF funding since 2014.JRC.B.3-Territorial Developmen

An assessment of the impact of the FP7 ERA-NET scheme on organisations and research systems

The NETWATCH online platform collects and presents information to support the analysis of transnational research programme cooperation. Its content centres on the participants and activities of ERA-NETs and ERA-NET Plus. Building on these data, this report sets out an assessment of the impact of the FP7 ERA-NET scheme on stakeholder organisations and on the research systems in which they operate. In July 2012, the European Commission's ERA Communication gave renewed impetus to the realisation of ERA, targeting its completion in 2014. Transnational coordination of research at the programming level was identified as playing a prominent role in this, with ERA-NETs being a key instrument. These developments highlight the need to understand better the impact of the ERA-NET scheme. NETWATCH has accumulated substantial information on transnational research programme collaboration, which provides a solid basis for this impact assessment, together with complementary data from various secondary sources and additional data collection by JRC-IPTS. The issues addressed by the current report are threefold: -The direct impact of the ERA-NET scheme on the collaborative dimensions of national research programming practices, reflecting the extent to which the scheme is meeting its core objectives ; -The impact of the scheme on the behaviour of participating organisations and; -The overall impact on the national and European research landscape, particularly the nature and level of transnational collaborative behaviour.JRC.J.2-Knowledge for Growt

ERA Communication Synthesis Report

This report is a synthesis of progress towards achievement of the ERA, based on an analysis of country data on the five ERA priorities (as defined in the 2012 EC Communication) collected with the support of independent country experts in the first semester 2013, complemented by other relevant indicators and study results (taking into account in some cases limitations regarding data availability and quality). It offers a synthetic and cross-country analytical overview by ERA priority of relevant policies and related policy support measures adopted and implemented (including necessary legal changes enacted) in EU Member States. It covers the 28 EU Member States and 13 Associated Countries. This report aims to identify behavioural patterns across countries, take into account progress in relation to the ERA baseline indicators, and contribute to the ERA Monitoring Mechanism.JRC.J.2-Knowledge for Growt