Abstract:

The recent Strategic Plan 2021-2024 released by the European Commission cites Multi-Actor Approach as a broad research investment criterium. This is a consequence of the creation of strong ties between researchers and stakeholders through specific Horizon 2020 calls, related to bioeconomy and agri-food, within EPI-AGRI network. The current expansion of Multi-Actor Approach speaks for its success, but it also poses the challenge of making previous advancements significant across disciplines. Moreover, it has been observed that the multi-level and cross-sectorial strategies implemented in the past lacked the structure and the focus to sustain knowledge transfer beyond project lifetime. A gap between research and practice still exists.

Considering the legacy building blocks from FEUGA-managed projects (ROADMAP, GEroNIMO, SoildiverAgro) as assets for the next generation, this paper proposes an innovative consensual framework based on incremental developments.

In the Multi-Actor Approach methodology proposed by FEUGA, the innovation broke figure and the regional innovation networks have been reformed to provide endurance and balance, respectively. The former answers to the need for systemic change: projects able to transcend their own topic, specificities, and grant duration. The latter deploys technical and geographical dimensions as a counterweight to traditional top-down governance, opening the way for knowledge transfer from local to EU-level.

Within this new framework, exchanges can be described as ‘interactive innovation’, a knowledge transfer process suited for Multi-Actor Approach regardless of topic specificity or stakeholder imperatives. The ‘interactive innovation broker’ emerges as the responsible for setting the geographical and technical dimensions; balancing them for stakeholder empowerment; and fostering a network of facilitators that provide the project with an afterlife. In addition, the model here suggested embraces replicators and transversal communities of practice to ease the transition.

This proposal was implemented in 2021 in TransformAr, a Horizon 2020 climate adaptation project involving diverse water-related community systems. Early achievements speak of considerable tacit knowledge incorporated into a wider portfolio of solutions, as well as better prospects for their uptake and replicability. Moreover, consortium members and stakeholders both benefit from this trustworthy environment, procuring solutions on their own, without additional support from the researchers, and inspiring other regions and networks.

One reason for such a distinctive overall dynamism within the project are the structures achieved, flexible enough to accommodate a variety of community systems alongside a multi-discipline consortium. Another factor is the support of the interactive innovation broker to the procedures agreed in the consensual framework, providing researchers with adequate methods and resources, and continuous monitoring of the stakeholders’ interests.

It can be concluded that this review of the roles and structures for Multi-Actor Approach implementation allows to soundly link research and practice, creating and sustaining the conditions for knowledge transfer through symmetrical channels, from local to EU-level.

Keywords:

Interactive innovation, knowledge transfer, multi-actor, innovation broker, research governance.