Guide to Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation

Green growth
Why should green growth be part of smart specialisation?
In a resource-constrained planet, Europe needs to accelerate its transition towards a climate
resilient and greener economy to boost its competitiveness and be able to sustain its growth.
This is why sustainable growth is one of the priorities of Europe 2020, which stresses the need
for a transition to a green, low-carbon, resource efficient economy as a new paradigm for
sustainable growth. Innovation is essential to succeed in decoupling growth from natural
capital utilisation and is therefore the key to enabling sustainable and smart growth to go hand
in hand. Innovation strategies for smart specialisation will need to foster green growth. This
will result in an EU economy that is more competitive in a world of high energy prices and
tough resource constraints and competition. In this framework, public decision-makers and
stakeholders in Europe’s regions and cities, which are responsible to design, implement and
monitor these strategies, play a crucial role.
Not only do they often set the framework, but local and regional authorities are also usually
responsible for implementing policies, programmes, legislation and public investments in key
areas for sustainable growth and innovation such as energy, environment, transport, land-use,
education or social services. The coordination of different policies and different levels of
government is always a challenge, but it is critical in accelerating the transition towards a
greener economy and getting the actors of innovation and environment working together.
Moreover, regions have to reflect on how to benefit from the fast emerging greening ecoinnovation
sector.
How to act?
In the current programming period, ensuring innovation for sustainable growth requires
improved coordination between different operational and rural development programmes in
the areas of innovation, competitiveness, environment and energy; it requires integrated and
cross-cutting approaches that combine innovation and sustainability into joint policies and
programmes.
Managing authorities need to work together and also make sure to involve relevant actors,
such as environmental or energy agencies as well as NGOs and other representatives of civil
society. Public and private sector decision makers need to integrate into their day-to-day
decision making process sustainable development principles; sustainability must be integrated
throughout the strategies for growth and in the project life-cycle, taking into account the
impacts on the environment from design to delivery and end of life.
As part of their innovation strategies for smart specialisation, public authorities at regional
and local level also need to design interventions that help to overcome specific market failures
in this area, as well as improving the supply of green innovation, technologies and solutions.
Among the core measures that should be encouraged are:
• Commissioning a strategic analysis and approach on the region's own characteristics,
assets, challenges and opportunities as regards its environment, natural assets, renewable
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