Purpose and description:
European island regions face several challenges: depopulation, isolation, vulnerable environments and limited economic activity, often on a smaller scale, focusing on economic sectors such as agriculture and tourism. One of the biggest threats facing islands is depopulation due to limited job opportunities, especially for the young and higher educated.

But the islands also have their advantages over the mainland: they can be more independent and have a strong commitment to the local community, and it can trigger innovation and provide a clear, resourceful environment for experimental implementation of new ideas. Therefore, in this project, the island regions want to address the potential for diversification of their economies by improving their innovation policies. Our project focus is to explore and improve public policy measures to make the islands innovation “testbeds”, with experimental exploration and learning environments that can sustain and attract young, innovative people and entrepreneurial activity. This will be done through political improvement, learning processes, development of action plans, identification of good practice and involvement of the regional stakeholder groups. The project will collect and disseminate the acquired knowledge in a good practice folder and in an innovation guide for island areas.

Funding: EU
Partner: Interreg Europe

Project manager: Michael Kristensen