RESULTS OF THE ANNUAL EVENT OF THE INTERREG ITALY-SLOVENIA COOPERATION PROGRAM V-A 2014-2020 - 20/01/2021

On Wednesday 21 January 2021, the Interreg V-A Italy Slovenia 2014-2020 cooperation Programme held its Annual Event via Zoom. This was the third annual event of the Programme. The event was organized by the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy in collaboration with the Managing Authority - Friuli Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region, the Faculty of Management of the University of Primorska - leader of the NUVOLAK 2 project and their project partner of ECIPA Nordest. The event was attended by 82 representatives of various institutions: both those who have been involved in cross-border cooperation for some time, and those who intend to join in future planning as well as institutions that are committed to promoting cooperation. The annual event represented a sort of link between the good practices of the completed projects of the expiring programming period and the new challenges of the future. After the introductory greetings from the representatives of both countries participating in the programme, the introductory speech was given by dr. Sučić of the Jožef Stefan Institute, who underlined the importance of the European Green Deal for the creation of a sustainable and climate-neutral economy, i.e. efficient management of resources and the importance of cooperation.

The participants then had the opportunity to hear the good practices of four projects funded by the Interreg Italy Slovenia 2014-2020 Programme and one funded by the Alpine Space transnational programme. The projects were presented by:

- Prof. Dr. Mitja Ruzzier, Faculty of Management, University of Primorska: NUVOLAK 2 Project - Online platform www.mikrobiz.net and festiNNO event

- Mrs. Claudia Baracchini, Friuli Innovation: CAB Project - A new cross-border acceleration model for Startups and SMEs,

- Dr. Uroš Novak, Institute of Chemistry: BioAPP Project - Reducing the use of disposable plastics with the help of biopolymers

- Dr. Alenka Mauko Pranjic, Civil Engineering Institute of Slovenia: RETRACKING Project - Creating the conditions for the transition from a linear to a circular economy

- Mr. Uroš Strniša, Biotechnical Center Naklo: Project AlpBioEco - Development of business practices for the bioeconomy (from the Alpine Space transnational programme)

In the last part, the public debate, the floor was given to the participants. They stressed that the flagship document of the Green Deal requires everyone to take action to rapidly move towards a climate-neutral Europe (by 2050) and transform it into a digitally developed community. Changes are not possible with old approaches alone, so it is necessary for all sectors of the economy to act and invest in environmentally friendly technologies, decarbonization, support for new approaches to industry for innovation, etc.

Through cross-border cooperation projects, trust is being built across borders and consolidating EU integration. Although the project partners operate at different territorial levels, with different responsibilities, they all pursue a common goal of cross-border cooperation, which is to improve the conditions for innovation and sustainable development across borders.

Participants stressed the need to build on existing domains and enable institutions to have an even higher level of content interconnectedness, which has developed over the years and has been well received in the various domains, has produced results, and has the potential. For further developments and updates as well as being in line with the strategies and guidelines of the EU and this cross-border area.

It is necessary to strengthen the connection of stakeholders at all levels and develop an affiliation with the common cross-border area. Frequently used words were "capitalization" and "synergies". Capitalizing means converting experience/behavior into knowledge that we share with others, so the events that help to transfer the results achieved are necessary and highly desirable. They contribute to the synergistic action, allow the use of already researched good practices, and transfer and use them in other environments. Each of the projects presented offers possible changes to sustainable behavior, and these are a key condition for the transition to a climate-neutral EU.