Helsinki Smart Region 2.6.2014 - Uudenmaan liittoSmart(Region:(Pioneering ... •...

Helsinki Smart Region: Pioneering for Europe 2020

Second Edition, 2014

Authored by the EKA B project

The purpose of this paper is to assist the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region in international cooperation across Europe. The paper will also serve as input to the upcoming conference “Smart Specialisation Strategies: Implementing European Partnerships” organised by the Committee of the Regions, the S3 Platform, the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa and Valencia regions and the Province of Utrecht, 18th June 2014 in Brussels. The paper describes the development of the Helsinki Regional Innovation Ecosystem, as well as several interesting regional initiatives. It then formulates the ambitions and objectives of the Region and provides an outlook for the next few years. The paper concludes with an overview of EU Strategy 2020 opportunities for Helsinki as a pioneering region.

Publishing date: 4th June 2014

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Helsinki Smart Region: Pioneering for Europe 2020

The 1st edition of this paper was published in April 2013. This revised 2nd edition provides further details on regional innovation initiatives as well as on opportunities in the context of the EU 2020 Strategy. The paper is the result of a collective effort of many regional stakeholders in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region working together in the EKA project on the Helsinki Region as a Forerunner Area. We welcome feedback. EKA -‐ Helsinki Region as a Forerunner Area EKA is an instrument assisting the regional actors in defining the necessary activities. EKA is a two-‐year project 2012-‐2014 funded by the metropolitan cities Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa, other regional actors, and the European Regional Development Fund. EKA means Forerunner Area. The target is to speed up the regional collaboration and pioneering activities as the leading engine of growth. List of contributors • Atso Andersen, Aalto University • Tuula Antola, City of Espoo • Rogaciano Cavadas Kaipainen, Helsinki EU Office • Christine Chang, Uusimaa Regional Council • Kristiina Erkkilä, City of Espoo • Juha Eskelinen, Uusimaa Regional Council • Jarmo Eskelinen, Forum Virium • Glenn Gassen, City of Espoo • Heli Halla-‐aho, Uusimaa Regional Council • Ilmari Halme, Vantaa Innovation Institute • Olli-‐Pekka Hatanpää, Uusimaa Regional Council • Kristiina Heiniemi-‐Pulkkinen, Uusimaa Regional Council • Tuija Hirvikoski, Laurea University of Applied Sciences • Ari Huczkowski, Otaniemi Marketing Ltd • Hank Kune, Educore B.V. • Markku Lappalainen, Aalto University • Markku Markkula, CoR, Uusimaa Regional Council, City of Espoo, Aalto University • Kari Mikkelä, Urban Mill, Järvelin Design Ltd • Lars Miikki, EKA B Forerunner Helsinki Region, Culminatum Innovation Ltd • Marja-‐Liisa Niinikoski, Culminatum Innovation Ltd • Riikka Paasikivi, Culminatum Innovation Ltd • Hans Schaffers, Aalto University, CKIR • Riina Subra, Aalto University • Taina Tukiainen, Digital Business Cluster, Culminatum Innovation Ltd • Ville Valovirta, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland • Eero Venäläinen, Uusimaa Regional Council • Jukka Viitanen, Hubconcepts Inc • Pertti Vuorela, Culminatum Innovation Ltd Coordination • Lars Mikki, E-‐mail: [email protected] • Markku Markkula, E-‐mail: [email protected] • Hans Schaffers, E-‐mail: [email protected]

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List of Acronyms

6AIKA : Project (2014-‐2020) of Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Tampere, Oulu and Turku, Open and smart services strategy for sustainable development, co-‐funded by ERDF

CoR: Committee of the Regions

EKA: Project Helsinki as a Forerunner Area

ELY: Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment in Finland

ERDF: European Regional Development Fund

ESF: European Social Fund

ESIF: European Structural and Investment Funds

EUE: Energizing Urban Ecosystems, RYM Ltd, SHOK research programme (2012-‐2015)

HSY: Helsinki Region Environmental Services Authority

INKA: Innovative Cities, Finnish national programme

PreCo: Pre-‐Commercial Procurement

RDI: Research, development and innovation

RIS3: Research and Innovation Strategies based on Smart Specialisation

S3: Strategies for Smart Specialisation

SHOK: Strategic Centers for Science, Technology and Innovation

TEKES : Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation

VTT: Technical Research Centre of Finland

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Contents

Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 5

1. Introduction and Overview ............................................................................................................. 6

2. Helsinki Smart Region Innovation Ecosystem ................................................................................. 7

2.1 Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region ......................................................................................................... 7

2.2 Helsinki Cluster Policy ........................................................................................................... 11

2.3 Espoo Innovation Garden ...................................................................................................... 12

2.4 Helsinki Smart City and Smart Region as Living Lab .............................................................. 14

2.5 Vantaa Innovation Environment ........................................................................................... 16

2.6 Regional Entrepreneurship Model ........................................................................................ 18

2.7 Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Policies, Assessment and Prospects ............................................. 19

3. Helsinki Smart Region Innovation Initiatives ................................................................................. 21

3.1 Helsinki Region as a Forerunner Area (EKA project) ............................................................. 21

3.2 Innovative Cities (INKA programme 2014 – 2020) ................................................................ 21

3.3 Energizing Urban Ecosystems (EUE) ...................................................................................... 22

3.4 Open and Smart Cities (6AIKA) .............................................................................................. 24

3.5 Aalto Open Innovation Initiatives ......................................................................................... 25

3.6 Digital Smart Services Initiatives ........................................................................................... 26

3.7 Helsinki Smart Region Showcases ......................................................................................... 28

4. EU Strategy 2020: Opportunities for Pioneering Regions ............................................................. 31

4.1 European Strategic Frame for 2020 ...................................................................................... 31

4.2 Europe 2020 Strategy and Regional Innovation Ecosystems ................................................ 32

4.3 Horizon 2020 Supporting Pioneering Cities and Regions ...................................................... 33

4.4 Opportunities for Smart Regions under Cohesion Policy ...................................................... 36

5. Ambitions and Objectives of Helsinki Smart Region ..................................................................... 38

5.1 Positioning Towards 2020 ..................................................................................................... 38

5.2 Enhancing the Helsinki Region Innovation Ecosystem .......................................................... 39

5.3 Helsinki Smart Region and International Collaboration ........................................................ 39

5.4 Conclusions and Follow-‐Up ................................................................................................... 40

Appendix 1: Sources and References .................................................................................................... 42

Appendix 2: Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Facts ......................................................................................... 43

Appendix 3: Horizon 2020 and Cohesion Policy Opportunities ............................................................ 45

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Summary

The purpose of this paper is to assist stakeholders in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region in international cooperation across Europe. The paper also serves as input to the upcoming conference on “Smart Specialisation Strategies: Implementing European Partnerships”, a bench-‐learning conference for pioneering innovation regions organised by the Committee of the Regions, the S3 Platform and the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa and Valencia regions and the Province of Utrecht, 18th June 2014 in Brussels. Grand societal challenges are typically extremely complex by nature. Therefore, the key success factors in regional policy include continuous learning and reflection of new opportunities, as well as research and innovation in multi-‐dimensional co-‐creation teams and networks. Significant learning takes place as part of large innovation ecosystems. In the interfaces between universities, industry, public authorities and citizens, knowledge exploitation and capacity-‐building processes constitute important concepts, as do also exploration and knowledge co-‐creation. The regional innovation policy tackles these challenges. Its practices need to integrate top-‐down policy with bottom-‐up self-‐renewing activities, taking into account the characteristics described in this document. Smart Specialisation is one of the starting points and key principles reviewed in this document. Smart specialisation strategies (RIS3) provide a regional policy framework and basis for innovation-‐driven growth. The RIS3 is a process highlighting the "entrepreneurial discovery": an interactive and innovative process in which market forces and the private sector together with universities discover and produce information about new activities, and the government assesses the outcomes and empowers those players most capable of realising the potential. RIS3 strategies are much more bottom-‐up than traditional industrial policies. The present document describes the development of the Helsinki Regional Innovation Ecosystem, as well as several interesting regional initiatives. There is a need to create strong regional innovation ecosystems as platforms for collaboration, learning and co-‐creation, as well as testbeds for rapid prototyping of many types of user-‐driven innovations, based on transformative and scalable systems. The document formulates the ambitions and objectives of the region and provides an outlook for the next few years. It concludes with an overview of EU Strategy 2020 opportunities for Helsinki as a pioneering region in smart specialisation. This second edition of the report emphasizes the networking role of the collection of stakeholders brought together, the opportunities for interregional collaboration provided by European-‐level research and innovation programs, and the connection to existing European networks in urban and regional development and open innovation.

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1. Introduction and Overview

The objective of this paper is to discuss the opportunities and challenges for Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region, and in particular the Espoo Innovation Garden area, in the context of European 2020 policies and initiatives aimed towards creating connected smart cities and regions. The diversity and strength of the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region innovation ecosystem makes it very well positioned as a pioneering region in implementing the Europe 2020 Strategy and as an attractive partner for collaboration with other cities and regions. The paper considers the position, ambitions and objectives of the Region against the background of such European strategic collaboration opportunities. This revised 2nd edition will be input to the upcoming conference on “Smart Specialisation Strategies: Implementing European Partnerships”, a bench-‐learning conference for pioneering innovation regions organised by the Committee of the Regions, the S3 Platform and the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa, Province of Utrecht and Valencia regions, 18th June 2014 in Brussels. However, the aims of the paper are wider; they reflect a dialogue during the past period among all Helsinki Region stakeholders concerned, and supports them in creating new collaboration opportunities, not only within the Region but also between the Helsinki Region and other regions in Europe. Partnering actors in the Region may benefit from this process to further collaborate on strengthening the Helsinki Smart Region concept, and to develop specific roadmaps and action plans for the Espoo Innovation Garden area and the other Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region spearheads to pioneer urban and regional ecosystems collaboration in Europe 2020. Many activities are ongoing in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region in preparing regional strategic plans and implementation activities. A special objective of this paper is to create a stronger link to the new Europe 2014-‐2020 programme period, the Horizon 2020 programme, and the EU principles for regional innovation strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3). The Horizon 2020 programme provides interesting opportunities to support research and innovation on digital platforms as regards smart urban areas. As regards smart specialisation, the following policy dimensions are of special relevance, as defined in the EU RIS3 Guide1: • Making innovation a policy priority for all regions: provide incentives to regions to invest more

Structural Funds (SF) in strengthening their knowledge and competence base and in upgrading their innovation systems.

• Focusing investments and creating synergies: RIS3 to concentrate SF investments on areas of relative strength, economic opportunity, emerging trends and growth-‐enhancing measures.

• Improving the innovation strategy process: RIS3 to require smart, strategic choices and evidence-‐based policymaking: priority-‐setting on the basis of evidence/strategic intelligence about a region's capabilities, competences, competitive advantages and potential for excellence.

• Strengthening governance and stakeholder involvement: RIS3 to foster stakeholder engagement under a shared vision, link small, medium and large firms, encourage multi-‐level governance, and help build creative and social capital at the community level.

The main points brought forward in this new edition include the following: • Helsinki Smart Region brings together a diverse set of stakeholders with common objectives.

With respect to Helsinki Smart Region activities for the future, this collaboration network could be strengthened in becoming a breeding ground for European-‐level joint project development.

• Expanding collaboration across Europe will be at the forefront. Such interregional collaboration may go beyond benchmarking and best practice exchanges towards concrete partnerships and collaborative projects on key themes in research, innovation and adoption.

• Helsinki Smart Region covers a rich spectrum of testbeds, living labs facilities, datasets, user environments, experts and other resources, which can be part of international collaboration.

1 EU Regional Policy, RIS3 Guide 12.12.2011

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2. Helsinki Smart Region Innovation Ecosystem

2.1 Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region forms the metropolitan area in Finland. Uusimaa Regional Council is the regional authority for the Region. The owners of the Council are the municipalities of the Region. The main tasks of the Council – being a coordinator and consensus builder for the Region – include regional development and land-‐use planning, as well as the promotion of local and regional interests, in general. The Regional Council articulates common regional needs, long-‐term development goals and conditions for sustainable development. To support sustained wellbeing and economic growth in the Region, the Regional Council works in close cooperation with member municipalities, the government, the business sector, universities and research institutions, as well as with civic organizations.

Figure 1. Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region (see also Annex 2 for details)

The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region is the centre of Finland’s economic activity. Its strengths stem from skilled people; a research and education environment of high international quality and a versatile business landscape and the basis it creates for innovations. There is a concentration of small-‐ and medium-‐sized enterprises (SMEs) and large companies in the area – both Finnish and international ones. The Region’s industrial structure is extremely versatile and its population structure highly international. In fact, 55% of Finland's non-‐Finnish speakers reside in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region. The Region is easily accessible both on the national and regional levels. It is, nevertheless, vital to ensure and develop connections to international markets. To this end, the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region has a fast rail link to Russia, good flight connections to Europe and Asia, and frequent maritime connections to Tallinn, Stockholm and St. Petersburg. The challenges that concern Finland's international competitiveness are especially relevant in this Region. Maintaining and enhancing economic competitiveness requires continuous economic investment and competence development, and the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region has good prerequisites to grow and to sustain the growth. The decisions taken in the Region are of vital importance for the future of the entire Finland.

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The core of the Uusimaa vision and strategy for the year 2040 is crystallized in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Programme (Vision and Strategy 2014; Strategic priorities 2014-‐2017). The political vision of the Region is the idea that a strong capital area serves as an engine securing prerequisites for Finnish success. The Region is being developed as a growing metropolis by paying particular attention to expertise, innovation and well-‐functioning local structures. The vision and strategy 2040 has been concretized into strategic objectives, which will be implemented by means of strategic choices. The ongoing renewal of this plan is the product of an extensive consultation process involving all major stakeholders in the Region and in state administration. The new plan also demonstrates political commitment, since it has been approved by the Regional Council, which consists of representatives of all the 26 municipalities of the Region, totalling 1.5 million inhabitants. Figure 2 provides a simplified description of the Finnish regional planning system, which is currently in transformation. According to the law of Finland, Regional Councils are responsible for preparing regional development plans in cooperation with municipalities and other public and private actors.

Figure 2. Regional planning system in Finland

Political commitment and productive collaboration covering the entire Region are manifested through the strategies. Some essential political alignments of the recent strategy are as follows: • The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region to become the most significant innovation concentration in the

Baltic Sea Region. The innovation concentration aims to bolster SME prerequisites to identify and establish strategic partnerships. The Region will be developed into the most significant innovation cluster in the Baltic Sea Region with a customer-‐driven, open innovation environment benefiting from the strengths of the different regional areas. In particular, favourable conditions will be created for the integration of science-‐ and research-‐driven and practically-‐oriented innovation activities. Collaborative platforms and interfaces are needed to form a stepping stone for innovations. Focus is on societal innovations where entrepreneurship and new forms of business and especially services are needed; similarly, the role of SMEs and new start-‐ups is accentuated.

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• Sustainable development promoted with innovation. Innovations in sustainable development help save non-‐renewable resources and reduce emissions. Such innovations face an extremely huge global demand as e.g. a substantial decrease in greenhouse gases without radical innovations poses great challenges. In these markets the Ris to have a dual role: (1) It adopts and benefits from innovations created elsewhere; and (2) It develops and industrializes innovations promoting sustainable development.

• The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region will be carbon-‐neutral in 2050. This was decided on in the Regional Council. To achieve this, the Council has made strategic choices to focus in particular on the following: (1) Increase in the use of renewable energy forms and development of sustainable development technologies, and (2) Creation of new practices in construction to promote sustainable lifecycle thinking.

In summary, the vision of Uusimaa 2040 is “to be at the top top in the Baltic Sea Region when it comes to creating and benefiting from economic and mental growth, enabling a practical everyday life for its inhabitants and arranging activities in an ecologically and economically sustainable way”. The future development of the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region is shaped by spearhead growth triangles, notably innovation clusters in Meilahti, Viikki, Kumpula and Pasila in Helsinki, Espoo Innovation Garden, and the Aviapolis area in Vantaa, operating also with several smaller centres around in the Region. In turn, the Helsinki Region is part of a wider developing triangle of the Gulf of Finland consisting of the cities of Tallinn, Helsinki and St. Petersburg (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Triangles of Growth and Collaboration of Helsinki Region (Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Programme) Three overarching Uusimaa strategic objectives for 2040 have been defined in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Programme in terms of making the Region: 1. A platform for intelligent growth: foundation in sustainable development and intelligent

solutions. 2. Easy to reach, live and work in: emphasis on effortless transport, working and functioning, and an

attractive living environment. 3. Clean and beautiful: sensible use of natural resources, maintenance of natural diversity and

becoming carbon neutral.

RUSSIA&ST.&PETERSBURG&

ESTONIA&TALLINN&

SWEDEN&STOCKHOLM&

Häme&Päijät<Häme&

Kymenlaakso&USA

EU

AASIA Espoo&InnovaFon&Garden&

Pasila&Viikki&MeilahF&

Aviapolis&Tikkurila&

Helsinki<&Uusimaa&

KUUMA municipalities

Eastern Uusimaa

Western Uusimaa

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HELSINKI-‐UUSIMAA REGION STRATEGIC CHOICES 2014 – 2017

Growth opportunities • Open development environments and intelligent services • Regenerating business • Environmental business – clean tech • Urban Food Services • Growth from the East

Practical everyday life • Intelligent and smooth traffic • Comfortable housing and living environment • Good working life • Immigration and Integration • Localness, Local Democracy and Youth Participation

Sustainable ecology • Natural diversity and natural resources • Improving the State of Waterways and the Baltic Sea • Environmentally Smart Lifestyle • Carbon Neutral Helsinki Region

In terms of strategic choices 2014 – 2017, emphasis is on growth opportunities, practical everyday life, and sustainable ecology. In this context, smart specialization is considered a key framework for strategic choice, addressing technological solutions and services, wellness technology and services, clean tech, and intelligent services. Spearhead plans for the next years are summarized above.

Figure 4. Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Programme and S3 strategic choices

Cleantech)

Technological)Solu0ons)and)Services))

2.1.$Intelligent$and$Smooth$

Traffic$

2.2.$Comfortable$Housing$and$Living$

Environment$

2.3.$Good$Work$

2.4.$ImmigraDon$and$IntegraDon$

2.5.$Localness,$Local$Democracy$

and$Young$People’s$

ParDcipaDon$

1.5.Growth$from$the$East$

6Aika$–$Open$and$Smart$CiDes$Strategy$

Enterprise$Ecosystem$

InnovaDon$Hub$

3.1.$Natural$Diversity$and$

Natural$Resources$

3.2.$Improving$the$State$of$Waterways$and$the$BalDc$Sea$

3.3.$Environmentally$Smart$Lifestyle$

Wellness)Technology)and)Services)

WatersUproject$

3.)Sustainable)Ecology)

Intelligent)Services)(crosscu=ng))

1.2.RegeneraDng$Business$

1.4.$Urban$Food$Services$

1.1.$Open$Development$

Environments$and$Intelligent$Services$

1.)Opportuni0es)for)Growth)

3.4.$Carbon$Neutral$Uusimaa$

Regional$plan$supporDng$innovaDons$

1.3.Environmental$Business$U$Cleantech$

2.)Prac0cal)Everyday)Life)

Focus)areas)

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Figure 4 connects the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa longer-‐term programme, the priorities in smart specialization, and the current S3 strategic choices, including those that have been started (purple).

2.2 Helsinki Cluster Policy2 As the leading national expertise cluster, the Helsinki Region remains the strategic core of Finland’s international competitiveness. The Region is the economic heart of the small and open Finnish economy. ’Helsinki Region’ is both a fairly loose cross-‐municipal organization and a vaguely defined area surrounding the capital region, consisting of the City of Helsinki and 13 other municipalities around it. These municipalities have a joint competitiveness programme, as well as different collaborative arrangements for water management and public transport and various informal networks as grounds for active co-‐operation. Increased collaboration between the municipalities is needed for the metropolitan region to function as an effective ‘Smart Region’. Helsinki, as a developing Smart City striving to foster a Smart Region, does not endorse limiting smart solutions to its municipal boundaries or to organizations that serve a single municipality. Removing boundaries between bureaucratic organizations is necessary within and across a competitive and agile smart region of the future. For the Helsinki Region to act effectively towards smart services it must provide platforms for innovation that are open to all municipal and regional parties with an interest in developing new products and services. The competition for applications and cases, as discussed below, offers evidence of this (cross-‐municipal) collaboration in setting up an innovation platform around open data aiming at smart services for citizens. Collaboration is of crucial interest, and the innovation strategies deployed in the Helsinki Region aim at establishing forms of collaboration that will more efficiently harness the huge innovation potential of the metropolitan area. The future competitive strength of the Region and its appeal as a strategic partner for the world’s other leading knowledge hubs will depend on the Region’s record of effective collaboration. In terms of Porter’s concept of cluster, the Helsinki Region forms a strong innovation-‐oriented set of clusters around key technologies such as mobile, digital services, cleantech, wellbeing and other. These are strongly based on favourable factor determinants such as high-‐quality research and education institutions, a continuous demand for change and innovative services, a highly competitive business environment, and at the same time, strong innovation-‐driven networks of businesses and governmental actors. Cluster policy in Finland was facilitated by a fixed-‐term (from mid 1990’s to the end of 2013) special government-‐funded Centre of Expertise Programme aimed at focusing regional resources and activities on development areas of key national importance. The programme has promoted the utilisation of the highest international standard of knowledge and expertise in the different regions. All specialization fields have had their own defined focus areas and strategic partnerships and customers. The services offered by the clusters have been commercialized and there are several development projects linking different cluster competences, collectively involving thousands of companies and important innovation organizations, universities and research institutions. The cluster concept and cooperation environment in the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region as implemented during the last 10-‐15 years and managed by Culminatum Innovation Ltd is presented in Figure 5. This landscape is currently in transformation, thanks to the emerging spearheads and several new colloborative initiatives (see Chapter 3). Although this cluster concept has been useful, the objectives of cooperation between clusters were difficult to achieve due to the financing system of the cluster policy. The thematic approach of the new INKA-‐program on Innovative Cities aiming to create internationally attractive local innovation hubs is planned to more effectively impact the multidisciplinary cooperation.

2 This and following sections use Helsinki Smart Cities case study materials developed by CKIR for the FIREBALL project (www.fireball4smartcities.eu) as well as the Culminatum sources.

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Figure 5. Cluster classification applied to the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region

2.3 Espoo Innovation Garden The Helsinki Region is transforming into a strong, regionally-‐based innovation ecosystem. Its most visible outcome is the Espoo regional innovation ecosystem. Espoo Innovation Garden is a concept that Espoo is using to spread the innovative mindset all over the City of Espoo and to all of its activities. The creations of this thinking and operating mode started within a 5 km2 area in Otaniemi-‐Keilaniemi-‐Tapiola which was previously called the T3 area, but is now extended wider. This initial area is the largest technology, innovation and business hub in Finland and Northern Europe: it consists of 800 companies, 20 R&D centres and a number of Centres of Excellence. It is a living community employing more than 40 000 professionals representing 110 nationalities, and hosting 5 000 research scientists and 16 000 students. It is also a residence area for 43 000 citizens, the number to grow by some 5 000 – 10 000 during the next 10 years. Its ecosystem of companies, universities and technology centres accounts for 50 % of the R&D value in Finland, and generates 60-‐80 start-‐ups a year. Stakeholders and partners include the City of Espoo, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Aalto University, Laurea University of Applied Science, Metropolia University of Applied Science, Technopolis, KCL, Sitra and the Federation of Finnish Technology Industries. Finland's geographical location makes it a gateway for companies entering the Nordic, Russian and even the whole European market. Espoo is centrally located between Europe, Russia and Asia. The City of Espoo (Population: 260 000) is the second largest city in Finland and is the innovation driver within the Helsinki Region. The city has gained international fame as a hub of know-‐how, research and development, at the heart of which stands the Aalto University campus. Espoo is also a centre of international company headquarters and high-‐technology businesses. The city has developed this position in effective interaction with various partners. Espoo’s most important resources include its active inhabitants, educational institutions, communities and businesses. The goal is to make Espoo a pioneer in the municipal sector, as well as a good place to live, learn and work, and the place to engage in entrepreneurship. Espoo’s core interest is to develop the ecosystem for Espoo Innovation Garden to become both an effective operating environment that energizes people, and a globally unique orchestrated innovation

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ecosystem based on the mutual interaction between the university, the business community, the public sector and the third sector. Naturally, regions compete to attract experts and investments in a world characterized by rapid change and increasing globalization. The Espoo Innovation Garden proposal for the EU Innovation Capital Award Competition created many new avenues for the collaboration both locally and also globally. In 2014, Espoo ranked among the six finalists out of 60 candidates (as a result of the competition, the first EU Innovation Capital is Barcelona) and it was a great opportunity to present the innovation ambitions of Espoo and the entire Helsinki Region. The City of Espoo and its stakeholders and citizens will continue their activities with the target to make Espoo Innovation Garden a recognized forerunner among the world’s most significant international innovation hubs and urban environments. The planned activities for the next years include: • Projected investments linked to the Espoo Innovation Garden area of around 6 billion € within

the next ten years; • Creation of a Societal Innovation Living Lab that will innovate to create an inspiring environment,

smarter city, better public services and foster entrepreneurship (partnership Espoo – Aalto University and other educational institutions around);

• New metro under construction improving connections between Helsinki downtown and other business and residents areas of the metropolitan region (to be opened in 2016);

• A new Aalto University core campus designed to accelerate collaborations between technology, business, arts and design.

The role of Aalto University in the development of Espoo Innovation Garden is crucial. Human-‐driven built environments form one of Aalto University’s strategic focus areas. The University’s objective, supported by the creation of Design Factory, Media Factory and Service Factory as innovation platforms facilitating new forms of collaboration between academic teams and students with business and communities, is to develop its main campus and its neighbouring areas into a globally leading innovation hub. The ambitious goals support realizing the Aalto University’s mission, which aims to change the world by means of internationally high-‐level research, pioneering education, boundary breaking, , and renewal. Espoo Innovation Garden embeds a rich innovation ecosystem that is closely linked to Aalto’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, consisting of the operations of Aalto Start-‐up Center, EIT IC Labs, AppCampus, Startup Sauna, Aalto Center for Entrepreneurship, Aalto Ventures Program, to name the key new activities within the last few years. Additionally, Laurea University of Applied Sciences focuses on service innovation carrying out professional education, regional development and research and development activities following the Learning by Developing model, strongly focusing on the Knowledge Triangle for strengthening interaction and synergy between research, education and innovation and applying new mechanisms for collaboration among regional stakeholders such as Living Labs. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland as the biggest multi-‐technological applied research organisation in Northern Europe provides a range of technology solutions and innovation services for industry and society. In transforming the Espoo Innovation Garden area, several challenges and opportunities are addressed. Laboratories for research and innovation are no longer traditional university facilities, but regional innovation ecosystems operating as testbeds for rapid prototyping of many types of user-‐driven innovations: new products, services, processes, structures and systems which need to be transformative and scalable. The new generation of innovation activities is a socially motivated and open innovation ecosystem, which is complex and global by nature and has emerged through the participation of all those in the online community. European regions should move towards open innovation, within a human-‐centred vision of partnerships between public-‐ and private-‐sector actors, with universities playing a crucial role. This means modernizing the traditional Triple Helix model of

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academia, industry and government. This way the area will further evolve as a regional innovation ecosystem serving its actors, activities, events and external stakeholders. Special emphasis is on how Espoo Innovation Garden can become a global pioneer as a societal innovation testbed.

2.4 Helsinki Smart City and Smart Region as Living Lab The prominent role of user-‐driven and open innovation (living labs) underlines the strength of the cluster. Actively supported by local and regional governments, as well as by governmental funding for research, development and innovation projects, Living Labs have been established in and around the Helsinki Region (e.g. Helsinki Living Lab, Arabianranta Living Lab, as well as several Living Labs operating around the educational institutions, i.e. Aalto, Laurea etc.). Their functions are diverse, but all are basing their activities on the principles of user-‐driven Innovation. There is a strong tradition of Living Lab research in Finland and various types of organizations – universities, city-‐ or region-‐owned development agencies (e.g. Forum Virium), companies and SMEs – have established Living Labs in the Helsinki Region area. The municipalities use Living Labs for economic development and societal activation in energy issues, service provision in health care of the elderly, preventive care, and urban living. Several Universities of Applied Sciences conduct research in Living Labs at the edge of science and practice. Companies such as Microsoft, Philips and Nokia apply Living Labs as user-‐centred hubs for ideation and product development, and national research institutions use Living Labs as platforms for innovation. These living labs focus on bringing users – with their knowledge, ideas, and experiences – together with the developers of new services and products to increase the quality and usability of the services and products created. Collaboration with local small-‐ and medium-‐sized companies is actively sought and managed, while entrepreneurship is enhanced at Service, Media and Design Factories through the collaboration models at Aalto University. Since 2007, a network of “Living Labs” has been providing test and experimentation environments where user communities can work with producers to co-‐create innovative smart city services in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. A number of successful trials and commercial projects, such as a traffic information platform and Helsinki Region Infoshare, have been deployed in Helsinki, which has also run open data competitions, such as Apps4Finland, to inspire start-‐ups, citizens and established companies to employ open data resources. This network is overseen by Forum Virium Helsinki, a private non-‐profit organization owned by the City of Helsinki. Forum Virium’s projects span six key areas -‐ smart city, wellbeing, new forms of media, innovative public procurement, innovation communities, and growth services. While the role of Living Labs is only one aspect of Helsinki Smart City programme, it has a wide influence because of its emphasis on openness, user engagement and co-‐creation. Within the Helsinki cluster environment, it provides the powerful glue between the diverse elements of a strong innovation system. Since the 1990’s, a growing number of new developments have been based on mobile technology in the Helsinki Region. For the Helsinki Smart City strategy, the emergence of a mobile application cluster is an asset and the resulting competition within the cluster is equally essential. The proximity of the cluster members, both geographical and cultural, supports the constant drive to innovate in order to grow. This gives a push to the development of innovative ideas for the Smart City. The user demand and citizen’s participation and demand provide a powerful pull. By becoming a centre of innovative and competitive firms, a cluster attracts new firms to the area, thus creating economic growth. Within the Region, this competitive-‐collaborative process is ongoing within IT, media, services, and particularly in the sector of mobile application development. The City of Helsinki has stimulated the development of a Mobile Application Cluster by organizing competitions for innovative applications. The Smart City services that are developed in competitions benefit both the Mobile Application Cluster and the citizens. The function of the competition mechanism was to encourage the development of new mobile applications utilizing Open Data.

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Experience so far has shown how a Living Lab functions as an innovation intermediary where competition is instrumental in stimulating the development towards a smarter City. The University of Helsinki is the largest university in Finland with 35 000 students spread across eleven major faculties. With over 8 000 staff members, four open campuses within the city and collaboration with several hundred national and international institutions, it has grown into a strong international intellectual hub. It has an annual budget of over 600 million euros. The University is ranked as the 76th (Shanghai list) best of the world’s 15 000 universities. It is one of Europe’s top multidisciplinary universities. The goal is to eventually rank among top 50. The University of Helsinki is especially strong in the fields of space science, atmospheric science, nanoscience, cancer research, genetics, diabetes research, teacher education, democracy and citizenship participation studies, welfare studies, russia studies, metapopulation biology, food research and environmental studies. The activities are located on four campuses. The Viikki Campus for Life Sciences is a major concentration in the field of biosciences, and it is often called the “green campus”. The Campus is home to four faculties, two independent research institutes of the University of Helsinki and the Viikki Science Library. It has more than 6 500 students and 1 600 teachers in such fields as environmental science, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, food research and economics, in addition to biosciences. The Campus attracts an increasing number of businesses to the Makery, which combines business development expertise and the food sector expertise of Viikki Food Centre. The Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute, the Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira and a part of the MTT Agrifood Research Finland are also situated in Viikki. The University is keen to improve links with private-‐sector companies. The Bioscience Campus in Viikki hosts a business and science park for start-‐up companies in the biosciences and biotechnology. The University also participates in several new strategic centers of science, technology and innovation. Meilahti Campus, the Academic Medical Center Helsinki, is a recognized international hub for research, training and translational medicine. It comprises the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Helsinki, the Helsinki University Central Hospital and the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM). The Campus is a nationally as well as internationally recognized center for medicine, health and well-‐being. Its strenght lies in bringing together professionals from various institutions – universities, hospitals, research institutes and business organisations – to reach shared goals. Specialist organisations based in the campus area collaborate globally with the best research institutions. The mission of the FIMM is to advance new fundamental understanding of the molecular, cellular and etiological basis of human diseases. This understanding will lead to improved means of diagnostics and the treatment and prevention of common health problems. Valuable Finnish clinical and epidemiological study materials will be adopted in the research. Biobanks are being developed, now turning into biodata banks and utilising advanced bioinformatics. Versatile expertise and top-‐level medical research on oncology, diabetes, neurological disorders, cardiac diseases and many other fields of rapidly transforming medical areas gravitate to the scientific community of the Meilahti Campus. Biomedicum Helsinki, a center for medical research and training, offers a unique environment for cooperation among the personnel involved in the University´s medical education, research training, graduate studies, basic medical research, clinical research conducted by the Helsinki University Central Hospital, and business organisations. Besides the University of Helsinki and the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa, the research community comprises the National Institute of Health and Welfare, the Folkhälsan Research Center and many other foundation-‐based research institutes.

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Biomedicum Helsinki perfectly demonstrates how important large and multidisciplinary operating environments are for the research and education. A high-‐quality research support ecosystem, with common facilities and shared imaging and DNA/RNA sequencing and analysis services has been established through such co-‐operation. A specialist providing expertise, solutions and networks is never far away.

Figure 6. The main innovation hubs of the City of Helsinki

The Kumpula Science Campus is some four kilometres from the centre of Helsinki. The campus houses the Departments of Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Statistics, Computer Science as well as Geosciences and Geography of the Faculty of Science of the University of Helsinki. The strategic research areas of the faculty include space research, basic environmental research, climate science, nanoscience, computational science, mathematical physics, data analysis of biological data, and geoinformatics, geosciences and urban research. VERIFIN (Finnish Institute for Verification of the Chemical Weapons Convention) and The Finnish Meteorological Institute are also located in the campus.

The City Centre Campus for Human Sciences is home to the Departments of Theology, Law, Arts, Education and Social Sciences. The locations of different campuses are shown in the Figure 6. Also the location of Forum Virium, a private non-‐profit organization owned by the City of Helsinki, is shown in the figure.

2.5 Vantaa Innovation Environment The City of Vantaa consists of diverse areas which have been developed together with companies to implement new innovative solutions into practice. Innovation clusters have been created from within the same industry to develop and grow together. These innovation clusters operate as showrooms demonstrating the latest technology of industry and member companies. Vantaa supports the generation of new business opportunities and the exploitation of new technologies. To support companies in their development from the idea to the actual market entry, demonstration

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environments have been created, where new products and services are tested in practice by real end-‐users. All these elements together constitute the Vantaa Innovation Environment. Altogether there are 300 companies, five universities and four universities of applied sciences in the innovation environment. Companies and universities together produce innovations for user needs. The Vantaa Innovation Environment offers an excellent demonstration and test environment for the products, services and systems provided by companies and other organizations

Finland's biggest international airport Helsinki Airport (HEL) is located in Vantaa, offering the quickest routes from Europe to Asia. The Aviapolis area, which is located around the international airport, is the fastest growing business environment in the metropolitan area. 2 billion € public investments on infrastructure have been made to improve the Aviapolis area. There are 34 000 jobs and 18 000 residents in the area. It can be said indeed that you really are just a walking distance away from the rest of the world. The development of the Aviapolis area is very important for the competitiveness of Finland. The airport area is an international hub

for the Helsinki Region. The connectivity of the Region allows domestic companies increased access to foreign markets and increased foreign competition in the home market. More free movement of investment capital and workers between countries also improves the productivity of companies. Another good example is the new operational environment of Kivistö, which will grow from an area of 2 000 jobs and 8 000 residents in the next 20 years into an area of 30 000 jobs and 30 000 residents. This provides again a new demonstration environment for innovative solutions to be tested in. At the moment, the following five innovation clusters operate in the Vantaa Innovation Environment based on the demand of the Region (Figure 7). • Airport Cluster Finland is an active network of Finnish companies operating in the airport

business. Its 30 member companies represent a wide range of airport expertise, providing high-‐quality products and services for airports worldwide. The main goal of Airport Cluster Finland is to promote Finnish airport industry-‐related knowhow internationally, and to support the growth and internationalization of its member companies. By implementing different clustering activities, it also aims to build concrete business development possibilities for its member companies.

• CIDe Cluster Finland focuses on the development of products and services advancing treatment and rehabilitation. It brings together companies focusing on health and wellness, as well as public-‐sector organizations and other actors with business development and commercialization-‐related expertise. CIDe provides networking events, projects, as well as training related to the healthcare business and technology for its 26 member companies.

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Figure 7. Vantaa Innovation Environment 2014

• Green Net Finland brings together the expertise and resources of Finnish cleantech companies,

scientific and educational institutions and public authorities. Its thematic focus areas include environmental monitoring and energy efficiency in the urban environment. It has 60 member companies.

• Nano Lab Finland brings together Finnish companies in the field of nanotechnology and new materials. Its showroom demonstrates the newest solutions of companies in a concrete manner. Nano Lab Finland gathers together over 20 Finnish companies in the field. The solutions are related to better hygiene, indoor air quality, cleaning, construction, process industry, research, and product development. As an enabling technology, nanotechnology can be used to benefit all traditional industries.

• RFIDLab Finland is a neutral non-‐profit association, whose mission is to improve the operational efficiency of companies with identification technology. It helps companies with the business potential of RFID and NFC technologies, creates networks, and drives development initiatives. RFIDLab Finland is owned by its 45 member companies and organizations, including all the major players in the RFID and NFC industries that operate in Finland and companies that utilize identification technology in their business.

2.6 Regional Entrepreneurship Model A crucial element of the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region strategy is ensuring that research and innovation transforms into entrepreneurship. The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region was nominated the European Entrepreneurial Region 2012. The Region’s entrepreneurship support throughout the business growth life cycle consists of the entrepreneurial environment of the Region. It includes the infrastructure, the organizations operating in the field of entrepreneurship and business growth, development services and other support in different phases, the tools used, and all the organizations and the partner network operating according to the principle of Private-‐Public Partnering. This Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region excellence – the Entrepreneurship Support Model – was published in the

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EER application3 and is presented in Table 1 as an updated version. This model has been an effective base for the fast development in recent years.

Firm birth DISCOVERY

Development INCUBATION

Expansion ACCELERATION

Market Creation GLOBALISATION

Universities Research Institutes Private and Public Sector spin-‐offs è Activation and

Idea evaluation • Pre-‐Incubation • Academia • Aalto University • VTT • Product Track

Service, ELY Centre

Incubators Development organisations Entrepreneurial eco-‐system drivers è Company set-‐up

Kick-‐off and Coaching

• Helsinki Region Incubators

• Enterprising Future aim • Entrepreneurship

Society by students • Laurea University of

Applied Sciences • Vocational schools

Science Parks Business Development Private Public Partnering co-‐operation platforms è Growth Financing

and Networking • Tekes financing • New hi-‐tech firms for

growth acceleration • Technopolis growth

services • Venture Capital firms

and Venture Accelerators

• Research Ventures • Service Providers

Internationalisation Expertise Clusters, Internationalisation and growth programmes è Growth

Enhancement • Internationalisation

support initiatives & co-‐operation

• Cluster activities • Acceleration

platforms, VC firms and financiers

• European schemes and co-‐operation networks

Table 1. Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Entrepreneurship support model The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region entrepreneurship atmosphere has improved widely due to activation and published success stories. Entrepreneurship is now integrated into the regional development agenda, and the good practices of student self-‐activation in the forerunner universities have inspired other universities, universities of applied sciences and vocational school students to activate their own entrepreneurship societies. Moreover, a culture of mutual contribution based on serial-‐entrepreneurs activities among start-‐ups and the start-‐up minded has evolved in the Region. A good example of such mentoring activity can be found in Aalto Entrepreneurship Society, which is based on student community but which welcomes experienced serial-‐entrepreneurs as mentors and coaches. This fully volunteer-‐based association operates close to the university entrepreneurship education and provides activities such as start-‐up traineeship programs, incubation programs, conferences, pitching events and even provision of venture capital funding. The importance of startups and entrepreneurship in the Helsinki Region is also reflected by the organization of Slush, the largest and leading startup and investor conference in Northern Europe and Russia. Slush is organized yearly by Startup Sauna, the Helsinki-‐based seed accelerator which has been rewarded as the top young university accelerator in the world by UBI Index. In November 2013 Slush gathered 7 000 attendees, 1 200 companies and 500 venture capitalists and other investors from 68 countries (http://www.slush.fi/).

2.7 Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Policies, Assessment and Prospects Concluding this chapter, the SWOT depicted in Table 2 summarizes the prospects for a sustainable smart city and region strategy of the Helsinki Region. Smart Cities and Regions make use of the possibilities created by Internet and Future Internet technology. The Helsinki Region seems to be well positioned as a model of a Smart Region for the push it gives to the development of new technologies within a multi-‐levelled infrastructure and towards the creation of new business sectors. Many elements needed to create, develop, test and market new ideas and new technologies are

3 Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region, Application for the European Entrepreneurial Region Award, January 2010.

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present. However, there are also some weaknesses and challenges to be addressed, such as the lack of diversity in the technology base, and the peripheral position of the Helsinki Region in Europe. On the other hand, as explained, the Helsinki Region also forms a key gateway for entering Nordic, Russian and European markets. Strengths Opportunities • Strong, innovation-‐oriented cluster • Strong level of collaboration government –

business -‐ universities • Prominent role of user-‐driven, open innovation • Effective innovative policy instruments • Gateway for companies entering Nordic,

Russian and European markets

• Strong innovation-‐driven collaborative networks • Push for creation of new business sectors • Emerging entrepreneurial ecosystem • Strong national and regional policy cohesion • Geographical location as basis for new

entrepreneurial opportunities • Unused opportunities of the Internet for business

and citizens and for smarter cities and regions

Weaknesses Threats and Challenges • Strong ICT sector but lack of diversity • Limited human capital base • Limited scale • Enterprises operating mostly in domestic

markets • Still too few growth-‐oriented and innovative

SMEs • Somewhat peripheral position in Europe • Gap between basic research and business

• Ageing population impacting labour shortage and conditions for SMEs

• Increasing international competition; globalisation pushing experts and companies to look for global opportunities

• Industrial structure largely depending on large companies and few industries

• Dependency on mobile technology, lacking diversity

Table 2. SWOT analysis of Helsinki Region Innovation Ecosystem As the leading national expertise cluster, the Helsinki Region remains the strategic core of Finland’s international competitiveness. High educational standards, a firm grounding in science and technology, and a solid track record of cooperation between the private and public sectors have laid the foundation for developing innovative products and services in the Region. As open environments for development, learning and interaction, development platforms reinforce strategically important areas of expertise and competitiveness in the Region. Designing, implementing and developing such platforms is an excellent objective for the common business development policy of the cities. Apart from the well-‐organised platform and co-‐ordination among the stakeholders, innovative funding solutions are needed to boost both RDI and innovation commercialization. Pre-‐commercial procurement (PreCo) and Innovative City® are examples of Innovative instruments boosting innovation in the Helsinki region in recent years. The Innovative City® Program is an urban innovation tool owned by the City of Helsinki and Aalto University, launched by the City of Helsinki and the Helsinki University of Technology in 2001. Today, this cooperation continues and has been developed with Aalto University from 2011 onwards.

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3. Helsinki Smart Region Innovation Initiatives

In recent years, Helsinki Region has launched a number of key initiatives effectively linked to Europe’s 2020 strategy. In this way, Helsinki as a Smart Region aims to be well positioned – from the perspective of Horizon 2020 – in relevant European networks across Smart Cities, Living Labs and future Internet. A few of these initiatives with special relevance to the objective of expanding international collaboration are described below. The chapter ends with a presentation of showcases.

3.1 Helsinki Region as a Forerunner Area (EKA project) The EKA Helsinki Region project is an instrument assisting the regional actors in defining the necessary activities. It is funded by the metropolitan cities of Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa, other regional actors, and the European Regional Development Fund. EKA refers to a Forerunner area. The general goal of EKA is defined as follows: “The Helsinki Metropolitan area acts as the engine of the international success of Finland and is capable to take a role of a European pioneer as an innovation ecosystem." The special target of the EKA project is to develop EU-‐level answers to the following questions and issues: 1) How to fill the gap between research and practice and how the practical activities in the Region will be European forerunner activity, 2) How to utilize digitalization and open innovation, 3) Dynamiting the Regional Innovation Ecosystem, creating an operational model for the Knowledge Triangle and modernizing the Triple Helix, 4) Inclusiveness, interaction, Living Lab -‐activities and societal innovations and 5) Scalability of results. To achieve this, EKA activities focus especially on the Espoo Otaniemi-‐Keilaniemi-‐Tapiola (T3-‐area) through workshops, events and networking with other projects to concretize actions to implement EU 2020 strategies in the area.

3.2 Innovative Cities (INKA programme 2014 – 2020) The Innovative Cities programme INKA is a new national instrument for policy-‐makers involved in innovation, supporting a joint effort engaging both national and regional players. In collaboration with the state and urban regions, the goal is to expedite the generation of new, major projects that are not only national in scope but have an international dimension. The INKA programme is coordinated and implemented by Tekes with project partners, such as cities, development organisations, companies, universities and research institutions. Demand-‐driven, solution-‐centered and multisectoral themes that combine several competence areas were selected for the programme from among proposals submitted by the urban regions. This procedure is different from the traditional technology or sector-‐oriented approach. The themes draw extensively on both Finnish and international expertise. The Ministry of Employment and the Economy has approved five national themes for the programme and appointed the urban regions responsible for leading the work in them. The themes (with the name of the region responsible for management) are Bioeconomy (Joensuu), Sustainable energy solutions (Vaasa), Future healthcare (Oulu), Smart cities and industrial regeneration (Tampere), and Cyber security (Jyväskylä). The thematic focus areas in which the Helsinki Metropolitian Region has an official partner role are Future Health and Smart City. While the programme has been started through preparatory projects according to the thematic areas nationally, the programme itself will start in autumn 2014, after the decision of the new state aid rules at the EU level. In the Helsinki Region, the cities of Espoo and Helsinki and the Helsinki Region Environmental Services Authority (HSY) started the preparatory projects in Spring 2014. Espoo focuses on digital healthcare and welfare services under the theme of Future Health. Helsinki carries out preparatory projects according to both regional themes, Future Health and Smart Cities. Under the health theme Helsinki works on digital healthcare services and on solutions for elderly people at their homes. The Smart City theme covers the development activities of smart traffic and real-‐time mobility status information. HSY’s preparatory projects focus on the development and utilization of industrial symbiosis, and the development of the hub for innovation and expertise on air quality.

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3.3 Energizing Urban Ecosystems (EUE) “Energizing Urban Ecosystems” (EUE) is a 4-‐year research program for 2012-‐2015, with 20-‐million-‐€ funding from industry and public bodies, including Tekes, Espoo City and Aalto University. The EUE program has brought together a broad group of researchers, innovators, business interests and civil-‐sector participants to pursue its ambitious objectives. The program is organised through RYM SHOK, the Strategic Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation for the Built Environment. The main focus of EUE research is the Otaniemi-‐Keilaniemi-‐Tapiola area in Espoo, Finland’s most significant concentration of innovation activity and an ideal landscape for prototyping potentially valuable innovation methodologies and technologies in real-‐life testbeds. The program aims to assist in creating an internationally recognized and multidisciplinary hub of excellence for urban development in Finland, working through a globally networked cooperation platform for R&D projects in urban development. EUE will create and apply operational models and solutions to the challenges posed by urbanization. The goal is to create user-‐centric and competitive urban solution concepts applicable to both existing and new areas. Solutions for smart urbanization, orchestrated innovation activities, energy use and mobility will be integrated into the design of the built environment, land use and ecosystems of service production. This research will create a powerful research-‐based practice for actively building the pioneering smart city region. Within the EUE program, the Regional Innovation Ecosystem (RIE) work package has brought together diverse technologies and methodologies for new urban design and development. In this innovation-‐enabling environment, the EUE program demonstrates how to effectively implement the key enabling success factors of the Europe 2020 strategy, and how an updated Triple Helix model supported by the Knowledge Triangle approach can enhance collaboration between the city, universities, research institutes and diverse enterprises throughout this regional innovation ecosystem. EUE shows how effective conceptualization and new research-‐based methods can produce the acknowledged regional measures which are needed to turn research results into innovation that can be locally tailored and then applied throughout Europe. EUE also shows how local and regional authorities can mobilize public-‐private partnerships and encourage grassroots-‐level participation (the so-‐called user-‐driven open innovation for collaborative value creation in open societies). The EUE program was launched in May 2012 and has moved forward in a number of ways, including its scientific research on regional information modelling integrated with virtual reality applications. The EUE research program uses cutting-‐edge techniques for spatial data acquisition. These are applied to, and combined with, concepts for a ubiquitous digital ecosystem in the City of Espoo. The target application will be a mobile and virtual smart city model with geospatial virtual knowledge elements. Specific attention will be paid to aspects such as usability and innovative visualisation for various user needs. By capturing the city’s geometry and characteristics through laser scanning, the resulting model can be applied in an information modelling process to conduct different kinds of analysis. The virtual — possibly, photorealistic — models adopted as the basis for the regional information model create a virtual city, geometrically accurate and visually close-‐to-‐identical with the real one. This enables city planners, built environment and real estate management professionals, as well as decision-‐makers and citizens, to apply the model for diverse purposes4. One of the first visible outcomes of the EUE program is the Urban Mill concept. The Urban Mill concept aims to become one of the most interesting global focal points for urban innovations. The

4 An integral part of the ongoing RDI process is the Meshmoon online virtual reality hosting system, which is based on on-‐demand cloud hosting technology and the open source realXtend Tundra software.

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Urban Mill started operations in January 2013 by connecting the core urban built environment inno-‐vation actors together. On the semantic level, the Urban Mill combines research and innovation service offerings and, on the pragmatic level, physical and digital SPace-‐as-‐a-‐Service (SPaaS) facilities. Urban Mill activities are integrated into, and offered through, its 1.300 m2

smart co-‐working space on the Aalto campus and its virtually tailored 3D mirrors. From the research and innovation perspective, the Urban Mill connects four wide research domains, their actors and global networks. These domains are: (i) Built Physical Environments; (ii) Ubiquitous and Ambient ICT; (iii) Urban Services; and (iv) Human Life in Urban Environments. From the thematic innovation point of view, the UM’s agenda is driven by its private and public partners’ long-‐term strategic needs. The provisional innovation themes for the year 2013, based on a EUE feasibility study, are: (i) Shared resources and services; (ii) Sustainability issues of smart connected cities; and (iii) (Service) Innovation ecosystem leadership. Physically, the Urban Mill is located in the same building complex with Aalto Design Factory and Start-‐up Sauna. Together, these three co-‐working spaces make up a physical Knowledge Triangle complex, with focused spaces for learning (main responsibility: Aalto Design Factory), systemic innovation (main responsibility: Urban Mill) and new business creation (main responsibility: Startup Sauna). From the perspective of Horizon 2020, the EUE program is highly relevant for achieving European goals. In the EUE program, we see how value can be co-‐created with customers and stakeholders, how the orchestration of support infrastructure between participating partners can create synergies in applying knowledge, skills, and resources to co-‐create value with customers, and how experience-‐centric models for value creation can be applied. Looking at the relevance of the EUE program to Horizon 2020, we see a number of important aspects, including: 1. Setting the example of a pioneering innovation region: how to create and maintain an effective

regional innovation ecosystem; 2. Using Espoo Innovation Garden as a testbed for specific innovative practices: developing realistic,

close-‐to-‐the-‐street innovations in practice, with a measurable effect on the lives of citizens and stakeholders;

3. The potential for applying many of the technologies, methodologies, working processes and collaboration models developed here in other European regions;

4. The possible scaling of relevant concepts, working processes, results, and research questions, whereby lessons learned here could become lessons to be learned elsewhere.

Digital Platform for Open User Centric Innovation Digitalization plays an important role in the EUE activities. The methods used and to be developed, as defined in the EUE project plan, include: 1. Action research methods for engaging users in research design and processes: (e.g. piloting, rapid

prototyping, testing, choice navigation and simulations, innovation camps, co-‐creation factories and open innovation platforms),

2. Information and digital modelling for effective simulations, visualizations and life-‐cycle analyses of regional urban infrastructures and their functionalities,

3. Tool/solution co-‐development processes in empirical settings (e.g. learning-‐by-‐doing at various Living Lab sites, feasibility studies, and proof of concept studies on emerging product/service combinations).

EUE and other activities organised by Aalto University and its stakeholders will create a digitised testbed and platform for Espoo Innovation Garden which enables companies to develop, prototype and test products, services and solutions and support their transfer to global markets. The way of working includes interactive, user-‐centric and open innovation enabled by simulation and visualisation in action research settings. The core tasks include demonstration, prototyping and implementation of new urban designs and business-‐driven innovative solutions, as well as service

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concepts for the future, application of cutting-‐edge knowledge and technologies such as digitization, information modelling, cloud computing, visualization and virtual reality. The regional modelling research and the development of virtual tools for effective communication and information sharing will be integrated into the processes of creating an Open Innovation 2.0 demonstration platform. This platform materializes the conceptual models and improves the multi-‐dimensional urban development approach, which combines the physical and digital infrastructures at the city scale. Many of the regional development questions and research themes can and will be identified through open dialogue and thorough analysis of the cross-‐cutting themes which create the basis for regional RIS3 strategies. In the Espoo Innovation Garden case, these themes combine research streams related to Open Innovation, Digital Services, Open Data, Smart EcoCities, Smart Platforms and Spaces, Innovation and Start-‐up Culture, as well as Urban Planning and the effective utilization of the natural environment. An enabler to create the digital platform based on Open Innovation 2.0 culture is the necessary ‘glue’ for the timely implementation of the latest research findings and knowledge from – in the case of Espoo Innovation Garden and Helsinki Region as a whole – Aalto University, Helsinki University, VTT, Universities of Applied Sciences Laurea and Metropolia, as well as a few other educational establishments and companies. The joint activities result in a one-‐of-‐its-‐kind testbed for the digital urban development. The Open Innovation 2.0 Digital Platform can and will be Finland’s model and an important contribution to issues related to Digitalization Challenge on the global scale. The Espoo Innovation Garden is a strongly developing area for living and working, and provides the main environment for experimenting with the elements needed for creating this platform. The platform is currently under development and a relation with Horizon 2020 funding opportunities is being sought.

3.4 Open and Smart Cities (6AIKA)5 6AIKA is a joint initiative of the so-‐called six-‐pack cities: Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Oulu, Tampere, and Turku. Forum Virium Helsinki is the key partner of the cities in developing the strategy. The total budget of the strategy will constitute at least 5% of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) resources allocated to Finland. Together with the funding allocated by the state and cities, the budget totals approximately 79 million €. The strategy will be implemented between 2014 and 2020. The Open and Smart Cities Strategy is a national sustainable urban development strategy, to be implemented as part of the European Commission cohesion policy 2014 – 2020. It was chosen by the Finnish Government’s Ministerial Working Group on Public Administration and Regional Development. The strategy and its projects are funded by the ERDF, ESF, the Finnish Government and the participating cities. The following focus areas have been defined for detailed planning of the 6AIKA activities: • In Open Innovation Environments the cities develop physical and digital tools, methods and

innovation environments to foster the creation of new products and services in real urban environments.

• In Open Data and Interfaces the cities open up, harmonise and publish their data reserves and interfaces to support the creation of new solutions, applications and services. The body of the six cities is an excellent experimental environment and market for businesses.

• Lastly, in Open Inclusion the cities develop open multi-‐channel and interdisciplinary citizen services. Better services support the inclusion of all citizens.

5 http://connectedsmartcities.eu/6aika-‐open-‐and-‐smart-‐cities-‐strategy/

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The cities participating in 6AIKA6 themselves decide on the projects they run. In each project there should be at least two of cities. Uusimaa Regional Council takes care of the formal process, handling the applications and payment applications. At the moment, 6AIKA is at a preparation stage (Jan-‐May 2014) and an implementation plan for the first three years is under construction. Forum Virium has collected the comments and demands of the cities. In 6AIKA, there will be several calls. Educational and research institutes and different organizations can participate as partners. Companies can participate in the projects through city procurement processes.

3.5 Aalto Open Innovation Initiatives As one of the key players in the Espoo Innovation Garden activities, Aalto University’s initiatives in relation to Open Innovation support the further development of the regional innovation ecosystem, in strong collaboration with partners. As the innovation ecosystem is strongly in its development stage, opportunities for ongoing learning and change remain extensive. The university acts as a facilitator of the dialogue between heterogeneous groups of researchers, businesses and societal actors, and develops activities and platforms that combine multiple aspects of open innovation. The initiatives include Open Innovation House, Open Knowledge Festival (2012), and Aalto Open Linked Data. The Open Innovation House constitutes a platform for open innovation, bringing together a variety of partners mostly from the ICT sector. Residents of the Open Innovation House include EIT ICT Labs, Helsinki Institute for Information Technology (HIIT), Nokia Research Centre, Microsoft AppCampus, and Wärtsilä. The first international Open Knowledge Festival held in 2012 was hosted by Aalto’s School of Arts and Design. It gathered over 10 000 participants worldwide over the Internet and over 1 000 attended the festival in Helsinki. The week’s programme covered the broad spectrum of themes related to Open Knowledge, including open data, open source software, open democracy and participatory approaches in digital technology, as well as Creative Commons and ownership rights issues among other things. Aalto Open Linked Data is a programme which collects and presents datasets available in Aalto University, including data about courses, publications, research projects, places (such as buildings), researchers and staff, organizational structure, news and events. The program provides access to datasets and also visualizes the data available. Aalto Open Linked Data provides a resource for research and education purposes, but most importantly, it also serves as a platform for application development that can change the ways the university operates. Aalto University has also established a range of multidisciplinary platforms around new initiatives enabling collaborative open innovation among a diversity of partners. These platforms collect multidisciplinary research on strategic themes such as energy efficiency (Aalto Energy Platform), digital economy (Digi Platform) and built environment (Living+). One of the new Aalto initiatives is the Open Innovation Initiative, establishing collaboration among Aalto researchers, multidisciplinary institutes (with strong involvement of the Media, Service and Design Factories), EIT ICT Labs, HIIT, external partners such as research institutes, corporations, cities, entrepreneurs and other. This initiative aims to contribute to the Espoo-‐Otaniemi innovation ecosystem and Smart Region strategy as regards infrastructure and community development, while also fostering international networks and collaboration with other universities and the public. The idea is to establish facilitated co-‐creation platforms with easy entry and exchange so that it meets the highest international standards. Real-‐life projects will include next-‐generation multidisciplinary factory concepts, Future Library, Visitor Centre, Mobile Apps, Smart city applications, Metro station open access showrooms and other similar bottom-‐up developments. These open innovation activities aim to build upon the

6 www.6aika.fi

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research facilities and extensive combined know-‐how and partnership networks from different schools and disciplines of the University. Aalto’s research and projects related open innovation cover broad and complementary themes, as illustrated in Table 3. The Open Innovation Initiative aims to increase the synergies between these research areas and collaboration frameworks, especially as these gather together local societal partners and international networks. In this regard, inter-‐regional collaboration is intensified to create a Smart Regions Network Strategy between Helsinki and other regions (e.g. Valencia, Barcelona and others). Most importantly, this initiative aims to develop a prototype-‐based, continuously improving innovation ecosystem and orchestration model that openly facilitates societal change and industrial transformation based on scientific discoveries.

Open innovation processes and practices

Open knowledge and open data practical applications

Macro level societal change

• Development of business models, economic and legal aspects

• Co-‐creation practices and collaboration models, next-‐generation approaches

• Business model destruction/creation caused by open data

• Relationship between design and ‘openness’ in general -‐ open design processes and their development, co-‐design.

• Innovation ecosystem enablers

• Operating models for multi-‐stakeholder platforms, such as Living Labs, factories etc.

• Teaching and learning methods and collaboration tools and approaches

• Interaction, behavioural aspects, learning by doing (individual/group/network)

• Open knowledge -‐ production and access to knowledge

• Digitalization impacts on society and businesses

• Business value of open data • Open data ecosystems • Learning tools and digital

platforms • Open data and GLAM

(Galleries, libraries, archives, museums)

• Tools for development of open data applications

• Mydata and similar personal data management

• Open data infrastructures • Privacy issues related to open

data • Services based on location

and sensor data • Aggregation of open and

proprietary data • Open source development of

software • Open services and initiatives

related to city planning • Systems and services for

archives and museums • Tools for audiovisual

production • Open research data and

university knowledge sharing • Fablab prototyping and open

design methods

• The future of work in digitalised open innovation ecosystems

• The role of civil society actors and networks in co-‐creation processes

• Digitalization impacts on people, society and business (foresight, societal adaptation)

• Knowledge infrastructures based on widespread utilization of open data

• Accessibility policy development from design point of view

• Legal implications • Governance models (local,

regional) • Policy frameworks and best

practices • Funding mechanisms

enabling participation and long-‐term development, including all stakeholders (from private individuals to businesses to networks)

Table 3. Examples of Aalto Open Innovation initiatives

3.6 Digital Smart Services Initiatives Within Helsinki Region, various initiatives focus on Digital Smart Services. The vision is that Finland will be a pioneer in open data digital smart services by 2020. Demand-‐based innovative public procurement enables piloting and launch of new business and market opportunities based on digital services. Flexibility and transparency attract foreign investments, international experts from a variety of disciplines, as well as businesses to the Helsinki Region.

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Digital smart services focus on developing internationally competitive digital service markets and related enablers, test platforms and environments. Essentially, this is the production of intelligent digital services through open, unified data and interfaces, as well as the creation of an integrated information platform between the private and public sectors. Municipal purchasing power is exercised to create innovation. Digital services improve the fluidity of urban transport and vehicle traffic overall, through the construction of a total transportation management and control system. Digital smart services are also employed in intelligent transportations systems (ITS) supporting urban planning and related services, from functioning intersections to city parking. The Helsinki metropolitan area has been at the forefront of opening public information and offers an internationally recognized and attractive ICT innovation ecosystem. The ongoing restructuring of ICT demands renewal. Digital services are building a new type of excellence. Focus area themes revolve around the competitiveness strategy of the metropolitan area, regional transport strategies, as well as the University of Helsinki, Aalto University, strategies of the EIT ICT Labs, as well as the Ministry of Transport and Communications intelligent transport systems and services strategy, the ICT 2015 report and the government program as well as the Suomi 2030 -‐preparation project. The capital area is networked globally, and significant international partnerships lay the foundation for the regional development of intelligent digital services. Focus Area Vision Finland's largest new growth opportunity is in the global digital economy. Finland and the Helsinki metropolitan area have solid capabilities in the development of this international opportunity. According to the focus area vision for 2020, Finland is a pioneering country in open data intelligent digital services. In the Helsinki metropolitan area, internationally significant new businesses are established, and markets, jobs and enterprises are created for key industries. Metropolitan area municipalities have invested in defining the overall architecture of ICT specifications as well as in the opening of interfaces and data. This has led to a compatible and comprehensive basic data storage database and data system. The flow of information between municipal, state, and publicly-‐funded entities as well as commercial operator services enables better services and produces business enterprises that can be exported. This increased efficiency leads to significant cost savings for the public sector. World-‐class expertise and exportable goods have emerged from creating a nationally and internationally compatible ITS information resource. Finland will be among the five most advanced countries in this respect. In support of infrastructure solutions, a diverse range of services have been developed to guide city residents towards smarter urban mobility. Authorities now have a more comprehensive understanding of both the traffic and other city operations to support planning and decision-‐making. The opening up of information resources also enables faster development of other key municipal functions, including construction, waste management, energy distribution as well as welfare. As residents and businesses become well-‐informed, they will be able to make more rational and sustainable decisions, improving the quality of life in an efficiently functioning city. Digital Services Business Potential Digital services and the ITS market are a growing business opportunity worldwide. By 2016, there will be three billion Internet users around the world, nearly half of the world's population. Intelligent digital services and the influence of the Internet will also extend to traditional industries, easily stretching across traditional industrial and geographical borders. In 2012, the market value of the Finnish IT market totalled 5.7 billion €. IT services continue to open new business opportunities for increasingly intelligent services. The European Commission estimates that opening up public information can generate 40 billion € per year. Digital services traffic / operating market development correlates directly to the increase in online traffic and the challenges this brings. Global

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digital service traffic market accounted for 19 billion € in 2010 and will grow by 22% by 2015. The Finnish IT market volume is estimated at 300 million € in 2010, and the sector employs 1 700 people. On a national level, the metropolitan area hosts the most significant entities; more than half of Finland’s world-‐class research activities, with sales (45 billion € in Finland), exports, GDP (10%), and employment (100,000 jobs) located in the Region. Approximately half of Finland’s ICT firms and professionals are located in the metropolitan area. Finland, and especially the metropolitan area, is the most networked area in Europe, with excellent links to Asia and the United States. This unique situation and the high level of competence enables the ICT sector and digital services to become one of the most important guarantors of welfare and competitiveness for both the metropolitan area and for Finland. The Helsinki Region is already internationally recognized as an innovation ecosystem. It attracts international ICT companies, investment and talent (e.g. Intel, Samsung, and Huawei). The competitiveness strategy of the metropolitan area, as well as the reform and renewal of its services, can be realized with the help of intelligent digital services and digitization. Along with the strong cooperation of municipalities in the metropolitan area, this facilitates the creation of an internationally important pioneer in the smart services market. Digital Services Roadmap According to the Suomi 2030 preparatory project, digital value creation will grow to be as large as the material value. Digital technology and the transparency of information such as the opening up of public databases, create new and global business opportunities, including design and simulation, as well as new production processes, such as 3D printing which will be commonplace in 2030. Digital governance is also an opportunity for Finland. Intelligent digital services create opportunities for pioneers in international markets. In the metropolitan area, the digitization of services is increased by developing and implementing a sufficient number of new digital services (i.e. mobile applications), additionally, contributing to and creating conditions for the creation of new international digital businesses and jobs. The Helsinki metropolitan area is being developed into a digitally interactive urban environment, which makes use of residents and the information they produce. The main steps that will be followed to implement the vision include: 1. Developing pioneer markets in open data and digital services, especially for digital mobility in the

metropolitan area (starting in 2014), along with the related test platforms, pilots, pioneer market initiatives, and coordination measures;

2. The creation of a novel market for innovative public procurement (1-‐5% of all public procurements are considered innovative);

3. Leading the international digital service market in 2020. Open data and interfaces constitute an enabler for digital services across industries, creating new digital services business opportunities. Different sectors are brought together by digital services and open data service platforms to build a sustainable, intelligent and efficient city. According to Finland’s smart traffic strategy, Finland is among the world's five most advanced countries in smart traffic services in 20207. In the Helsinki Region, the digital Smart City initiatives are implemented through many City and SHOK programs like 6AIKA and EUE.

3.7 Helsinki Smart Region Showcases This section presents an overview of attractive “showcases” of Helsinki as a smart region in transformation. These showcases illustrate the overall strength of the regional innovation ecosystem and its collaborative innovation activities within the Region. 7 The Transport Agency's recent report "Traffic 2017" presents a strategy of traffic management priorities development areas. See also Helsinki area traffic management policies.

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1. The Helsinki Region Startup Ecosystem The Finnish start-‐up ecosystem is thriving. Due to systematic investments by both public and private sector players over the last decades, the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region has managed to establish a strong and rapidly growing start-‐up ecosystem. It is based on an interplay with the entrepreneurially minded, start-‐ups, large corporations (like Nokia), serial entrepreneurs acting as mentors, financiers, universities and public institutions providing support for innovation activities. The ecosystem is widely spread in different industries but especially sectors related to games and health technology are expanding rapidly. Remarkable examples with roots in the Region include games companies Rovio and Supercell. 2. Innovation Alley: Design Factory – Urban Mill – Startup Sauna Situated in the heart of Espoo Innovation Garden, Innovation Alley is the focal point of innovation buzz in the Aalto University campus. Its core activities revolve around Aalto Design Factory (ADF), Startup Sauna (SS) and Urban Mill (UM). Together these three co-‐working and co-‐creation platforms, and their common yards, form a networked physical, virtual and social Knowledge Triangle with its nodes focused on learning (main responsibility ADF), systemic innovation (main responsibility UM) and new business creation (main responsibility SS). These three multi-‐disciplinary communities of practice work daily and closely together. Activities are mainly self-‐organised and collaboration is facilitated through shared boundary objects. The human-‐centered innovation orchestration approaches in use challenge the traditional institution-‐centered practices. Innovation Alley attracts thousands of international visitors (e.g. scholars, businessmen and investors) annually and the exchange with its global co-‐location networks is intensive. Aalto Design Factory (founded 2008) is an experimental co-‐creation platform for education, research and application of product design – where ‘design’ has a broad meaning. Design Factory aims to develop a passion-‐based student-‐centric learning culture for Aalto University. SS (founded 2010) is a non-‐profit space, organization and community for start-‐ups and aspiring entrepreneurs in Northern and Eastern Europe and Russia. The aim is to implement a blooming start-‐up ecosystem and a pay-‐it-‐forward culture into the Region in order to make it the best place for start-‐ups. UM (founded 2013) is a thematic focal point and open innovation platform service for global urban innovators. It is a co-‐working space, an innovation community, as well as a change orchestration tool for urban development. It aims to re-‐define the way in which people accomplish joint innovation work, and aims to achieve societal impact in a global urban context. 3. Helsinki Region Infoshare In 2010, the cities of Helsinki metropolitan area started sharing their public data as open data for anyone freely to use. Now these open datasets, available through the web platform Helsinki Region Infoshare www.hri.fi, make it possible to create e.g. useful applications such as a product called BlindSquare (http://blindsquare.com/), a smartphone app that helps blind people navigate the city. Another excellent example is Open Ahjo, the open application programming interface (http://dev.hel.fi/apis/openahjo) to the digital decision-‐making system of the City of Helsinki. Open Ahjo provides all the public decisions as open data, which makes it possible for anyone to create useful applications for citizens to keep up with decisions of the City council, City board or any City administrative board. The open data service HRI provides open data which can help everyone save time, effort and costs, and facilitates citizen engagement. For more information: http://www.hri.fi/en/news/helsinki-‐region-‐infoshare-‐2-‐years-‐of-‐open-‐public-‐data-‐publication/ 4. Smart Traffic By monitoring and publicly sharing real-‐time traffic information, the Helsinki Region Intelligent Traffic Services project sought to improve the flow of people through the Region. Information such as traffic disturbances, roadworks and parking was available on public display screens and on mobile phones. The Helsinki Region Intelligent Traffic Services project collected real-‐time traffic information in an effort to make it easier to move around the Helsinki metropolitan area. The services conveyed traffic information to motorists, public transport passengers, pedestrians and cyclists. The information was shown on public display screens and sent to mobile phones. The display screens still provide traffic information to thousands of Helsinki residents every day. The screens are available in selected pharmacies and medical clinics within the Region and different shops and educational institutions in the Arabianranta area. They display real-‐time traffic disturbances characterised by symbols on a city map. The most recent traffic disturbances and roadworks are also shown in text form. Additionally, the City of Helsinki has launched a contest for the best "Intelligent Traffic System in your pocket" app for smartphones. At present, the Helsinki’s Intelligent Traffic Systems strategy focuses on real-‐time mobility status applications, providing up-‐to-‐date information about Heslinki traffic and related topics such as air quality, to the public and also to developers allowing them to develop new services. Pilots are being carried out on selected areas such as city logistics and parking.

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5. CitySDK: Open Data to Attract Developer Communities In the CitySDK project 8, European cities are opening up data through uniform APIs to attract developers to use their skills to develop useful and better services for citizens. Harmonized and open CitySDK APIs are helping developers across the world to develop scalable apps for tourism, mobility and citizen participation. Forum Virium Helsinki coordinates CitySDK, keeping Helsinki in the lead of the harmonization work also after the project. By the end of 2014, more cities will join us to promote and to provide uniform Smart City interfaces and through this collaboration, API specifications for new domains will be provided.

6. The Biofore Concept Car The Biofore Concept Car is designed and manufactured in partnership with UPM, Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, and several other partner companies. The engineering and industrial design students of Metropolia design and manufacture the car with the guidance of teachers who have successfully carried out several internationally renowned concept car projects. The project combines expertise and insights from several prominent organizations from the field of high technology. The Biofore Concept Car is among the finest manifestations of Biofore strategy to date and we believe it will be a milestone in the utilisation of next-‐generation biomaterials in the automotive value chain. The Biofore Concept Car showcases the use of innovative biomaterials in the automotive industry. The majority of parts traditionally made from plastics are replaced with high-‐quality, safe and durable biomaterials, which can significantly improve the overall environmental performance of car manufacturing. The Biofore Concept Car is designed and manufactured by students from the Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. More information: http://www.upm.com/upmcc-‐en/Pages/default.aspx 7. Finnoo -‐ The New Sustainable and Green Maritime City Finnoo is a new seaside residential area in Espoo which will be home for almost 20 000 residents. The whole of Finnoo is planned to be an energy-‐efficient and carbon-‐neutral district. Tekes awarded these plans in their Witty City programme energy competition in May 2014. The key elements to reach the sustainability goals of Finnoo have to do primarily with production and use of energy. The marina will be developed into a pedestrian and cycle-‐friendly neighbourhood. Finnoo will also be well reached and served by public transportation in forms of subway and bus lines. The target for the entire energy system in Finnoo is to maximize energy efficiency and minimize CO2 emissions by decreasing the power peaks and increasing the share of renewable and recycled energy. The utilization of local waste and surplus heat will be enabled by a low-‐temperature district heating network. Traditional district heating would require higher water temperatures and thus would not allow the use of “waste heat” without further processing. Residential buildings will use both solar and geothermal energy. More information can be found at espoo.fi/finnooarea 8. Smart Energy Solutions Heating and electrical energy for buildings causes 70% of Espoo’s total emissions. The Energy Information System (EIS) developed by the City is a browser-‐based service that helps users considering switching to renewable energy to compare their choices. EIS will help people tackle the problem of overall emissions cost-‐effectively as an energy solution based on renewable sources of energy can be optimized for each property. The EIS can be effectively used in planning without the need for significant expertise in energy issues. The service is scalable both nationally and internationally for cities, companies, and communities. It is also easy to put to use for all parties due to open source development which provides a platform for further innovation. The Energy Information System can be found at espoo.fi/energiatietopalvelu 9. Helsinki Comprehensive Cancer Center Helsinki University Central Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center (HUCH CCC) is the largest and most versatile cancer treatment center in Finland, and one of the largest in the Nordic Countries, providing personalized cancer treatment. The center is part of the Helsinki University Central Hospital (HUCH) and is responsible for the oncological treatment of all adult cancer patients within the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa (a population base of approximately 1.6 million). Each year, HUCH CCC treats 15,500 patients, of whom approximately 7,500 are new cancer patients. The center employs 450 health-‐care professionals, more than 80 of whom are physicians. Childhood cancers are treated at the HUCH Competence Center for Pediatrics, in seamless cooperation with HUCH Comprehensive Cancer Center. HUCH Cancer Center is the first audited Nordic unit belonging to the Organisation of European Cancer Institutes network. There are four categories of OECI-‐designated cancer institutes, and HUCH cancer center is designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center (May 6, 2014). Therefore HUCH Cancer Center is one of the best cancer centers in Europe.

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4. EU Strategy 2020: Opportunities for Pioneering Regions

4.1 European Strategic Frame for 2020 The Europe 2020 Strategy focuses on growth for the coming decade, promoting a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy. Among its seven so-‐called flagship initiatives are Innovation Union, focusing on a comprehensive research and innovation strategy, and Digital Agenda for Europe, which targets the development and adoption of digital technologies. Innovation Union. As part of the Europe 2020 Strategy, the Innovation Union flagship initiative sets out a comprehensive innovation strategy to enhance Europe's capacity to deliver smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The key initiatives in Innovation Union address education, skills, funding instruments, access to finance, EIT, pre-‐commercial procurement, and the creation of a single innovation market. Innovation Union highlights the concept of Smart Specialisation as a way to achieve these goals. Especially relevant for Helsinki Smart Region strategy development is the approach towards Smart Specialisation. This is a strategic approach to economic development through targeted support to Research and Innovation. It will be the basis for Structural Fund investments in innovation and capacity building as part of the future Cohesion Policy's contribution to the Europe 2020 jobs and growth agenda. Digital Agenda for Europe. The key objective is stimulating the digital economy and addressing societal challenges through ICT. The seven priority areas that are relevant as regards Helsinki Smart Region include creating a new digital single market, creating interoperability and improved standardization, enhancing Internet trust and security, speeding up Internet access, investing in cutting-‐edge research and innovation for ICT, enhancing digital skills and inclusion, and applying ICT for the benefit of society. A concrete example of action is the Web Entrepreneurship initiative. Horizon 2020 and European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) include different funding instruments designed to jointly contribute to the shared objectives of Europe 2020, the Digital Agenda for Europe, and Innovation Union by developing synergies. Horizon 2020, the framework programme for research and innovation, is the instrument for implementing Innovation Union in addressing grand societal challenges, scientific excellence and industry competitiveness. The Cohesion Policy instrument (including European Regional Development Fund, Structural Fund and Cohesion Fund instruments) addresses regions and after 2013 will have an increased emphasis on innovation and smart growth specialisation in order to close the innovation divide between countries and regions. This will be achieved by developing world-‐class research and ICT infrastructures, establishing networks of research facilities, developing regional partner facilities, and increasing European partnerships. Of particular relevance in this context is Smart Specialisation (RIS3) 8. Other programmes are relevant, as well, for Helsinki Smart Region. Urban Europe9 is a Joint Programming Initiative (JPI) in which a number of European countries participate. Its main aim is to coordinate research and make better use of Europe’s public funds in order to transform urban areas into centres of innovation and technology, to realise eco-‐friendly and intelligent intra-‐ and interurban transport and logistics systems, to ensure social cohesion and integration, and to reduce the ecological footprint and enhance climate neutrality. Through JPI, countries can generate European solutions by means of coordinated research. The aim is to create attractive, sustainable and economically viable urban areas, in which European citizens, communities and their surroundings can thrive.

8 http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/home 9 http://www.jpi-‐urbaneurope.eu/

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4.2 Europe 2020 Strategy and Regional Innovation Ecosystems There is broad political consensus that the objectives of Europe 2020 Strategy cannot be reached without strong regional activities for place-‐based research, development and innovation policy. The key question is the way in which the required large-‐scale changes can be achieved. This cannot be reached by traditional measures and structures. The Committee of the Regions (CoR) has called for pioneering regions to form European consortia integrating different capabilities to create ground-‐breaking societal innovations for Europe-‐wide use.10 The focus needs to be on regional innovation ecosystems implementing Research and Innovation Strategies based on Smart Specialisation RIS3 and the Digital Agenda for Europe DAE (see Figure 8).

Figure 8. Orchestration to speed up and scale up the EU 2020 implementation and focus on Regional Innovation Ecosystems

The flagship initiatives mentioned above need effective implementation in Horizon 2020 and European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) at the practical level11. As far as urban and regional development is concerned, an entrepreneurial discovery mindset is critical. Close cooperation must be achieved between R&D projects and programmes relating to the creation, performance and effectiveness of local innovation ecosystems. For this we need new types of European research partnerships. Renewal and transformation are often based on concepts for orchestrated collaboration and innovative and effective use of key enabling technologies. Making these more widely accessible for European projects will refine and further develop their capacity to create implementable results and real impact. With EU funding for regional partnerships and collaboration based on smart specialisation, they can serve as the building blocks for European cross-‐border innovation and regional ramps for societal innovation. Regions need new arenas as hotspots for innovation co-‐creation. These could be described as "innovation gardens" and "challenge platforms", which together form a prototype workspace for

10 CoR Committee of the Regions (2012), CoR Opinion on “the Role of Local and Regional Authorities in Achieving the Objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy”, CdR 72/2011 final, Rapporteur Markku Markkula. 11 This section includes parts of the CoR Opinion “Closing the Innovation Divide”, Committee of the Region (2013), CdR 2414/2012 final, Rapporteur Markku Markkula.

Scien&fic(Excellence(&(Industrial(Leadership(

Regional(Innova&on(Ecosystems((Pioneering((EU2020(

Markku(Markkula,(2014(

More(Societal(

Innova&ons!

Innova&on(Union(

RIS3( DAE!

RIS3:!

Economic!transforma2on!agenda!

On7going!process!

Focusing!on!spearheads!

European!Partnerships!

DAE:!

Digital!Single!Market!

Broadband!&!Clouds!

Open!Innova2on!2.0!

Digitalized!Services!

RIS3!=!Regional!Innova2on!Strategy!based!on!Smart!Specialisa2on! DAE!=!Digital!Agenda!for!Europe!

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inventing the future. These are needed to address challenges -‐ from small local challenges to major societal challenges at the global level. RDI activity is therefore required that will pilot and create prototypes of (1) spatial configurations with physical, intellectual and virtual dimensions, and (2) orchestration and knowledge management toolkits needed to address the related challenges. It is particularly important from Europe's perspective to explore regional innovation ecosystems and the role, importance, activities, spatial solutions, and success enablers of communities and institutions that spur new and dynamic innovation activity in such ecosystems. New innovation institutes focus on the mindset and environment required for user-‐centric design, co-‐creation and rapid piloting. These new institutes, many of which have only been set up in the past few years, are flexible entities with a collaborative approach. Examples include: Incubators and Accelerators, Living Labs, Entrepreneurial Hubs, Development Labs, Social Innovation Labs, Fab Labs, Societal Innovation Learning Camps and Future Centres,typically operating as entities associated with universities, municipalities, regional and national authorities, and businesses. They combine new, open operating practices, the use of social media, new ways of handling intellectual property rights and new funding practices, a broad stakeholder network, and fostering of entrepreneurship.

4.3 Horizon 2020 Supporting Pioneering Cities and Regions Programme Structure For pioneering regions such as Helsinki, Horizon 2020 provides an interesting range of opportunities to support the transformation towards smart regions. Horizon 2020 has three main pillars: 1. Excellent Science (ERC, FET, Marie Curie, and Research Infrastructures), 2. Industrial leadership (enabling and industrial technologies, innovation in SMEs, risk finance), 3. Societal Challenges (societal domains). Figure 9 presents an overview of the Horizon 2020 priority areas.

Figure 9. Horizon 2020 Priority areas

Moreover, Horizon 2020 covers additional activities: Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation, Science with and for Society, European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and Euratom. Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation aims to level the playing field for EU member countries with respect to research and innovation performance. The aim of the Science with and for Society programme is to build effective cooperation between science and society, to recruit

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new talent for science and to pair scientific excellence with social awareness and responsibility. The EIT is bringing a real and lasting change to the European Union’s innovation landscape, by creating new environments where higher education, research, public administrations and business work together to produce disruptive innovation. Euratom is a complementary research programme for nuclear research and training. The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region is actively seeking partners in all these additional activities. Aalto University is preparing an Open Innovation Initiative roadmap to participate in calls related to Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation, Science with and for Society. In these calls the focus is particularly in innovation ecosystem development in the Region to meet international standards and integrate global corporations increasingly present in Finland such as Microsoft, Intel, Samsung, Google, Yandex etc. Currently the EIT ICT Labs Helsinki node is operating in the Region. Moreover, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Aalto University are preparing an application related to raw materials KIC, which will be launched later in 2014. In Euratom, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Aalto University, Helsinki University and Tekes (the Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation) are all active and seeking collaboration partners. Smart Cities and Regions in Horizon 2020 To achieve the high-‐level pioneering societal impact, the activities based on Horizon pillar (1) Scientific Excellence need to be multidisciplinary and integrated with the other pillars. In relation to Smart Cities and Regions, the Horizon pillars (2) Industrial Leadership (in particular leadership for enabling technologies and for support of SMEs), and (3) Societal Challenges are highly relevant. The Societal Challenges pillar addresses key societal themes, such as health and wellbeing, and sustainable mobility and transport. Particularly relevant for Smart Regions is the theme “Inclusive, Innovative and Secure Societies,” especially where it aims to close the divide between research and innovation towards innovative regions and clusters in Europe (complementary and synergetic with Cohesion Policies), and exploring new forms of innovation, including social innovation and creativity. Social innovation is promoted through grassroots-‐level on-‐line and distributed platforms for networking citizens. This allows them to collaborate and co-‐create solutions based on an extended awareness of the social, political and environmental context; in this way, it can serve as a powerful tool supporting the objectives of Europe 2020. For this, support can also be expected for networking and experimentation in the use of ICT for improving learning processes, as well as for networks of social innovators and social entrepreneurs. The following general themes relevant to Smart Regions are prominently represented in the Horizon 2020 Work Programme (2014-‐2015): • Smart applications in areas such as energy efficiency, sustainable urban mobility and transport,

smart governance. • Smart and sustainable digital infrastructures based on Future Internet enablers and

technologies such as cloud computing. • Social innovation in regions, cities and neighbourhoods enabled by collaboration-‐ and

community-‐based platforms. • Connected innovation infrastructures such as Future Internet experimentation and testbed

facilities, Living Labs and other resources as backbone for 2020-‐connected innovation ecosystems across Europe.

During the last few years, Smart Cities and Regions as a research and innovation theme has considerably grown in importance at the European level. A wide range of Smart City pilot projects have been carried out or are still running in the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP), drawing on Living Labs methodologies (ICT-‐Policy Support Programme). The 7th Framework Programme (FP7-‐ICT) has launched a range of RTD projects with a focus on ICT in the Smart City

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development, related to themes such as energy, transportation, healthcare and assisted living, environmental monitoring, public security, citizen participation, and Future Internet. New ways of creating innovation ecosystems building on living labs are being experimented with on urban, regional and cross-‐border scales. The large-‐scale Future Internet PPP programme12 partially addresses the application of such projects in urban contexts. The EIT ICT Labs initiative, which has a key node in Helsinki13 where Aalto University, VTT and several companies collaborate as dedicated partners, has implemented such projects focusing on mobile data, smart spaces and ubiquitous interaction, green ICT, Big Data and service design, and ICT for wellbeing and active ageing. Within these initiatives, stakeholders in the Helsinki Region such as Aalto University and VTT have participated in a considerable number of such projects. The growing importance of Smart Cities is reflected in the European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities (SCC), a partnership across energy, transportation and ICT, which was launched in July 2012 by the European Commission (DG ENER). This SCC aims by 2020 to demonstrate and scale up a series of major innovative solutions that combine energy, transportation and IT technologies, and enable pioneering cities to outperform by achieving European targets for reducing carbon emissions, use of renewable energy resources, and increasing energy efficiency. The recently issued Strategic Implementation Plan (October 2013) concentrates on three vertical areas: 1. Sustainable Urban mobility, 2. Sustainable Districts and Built Environment, 3. Integrated infrastructures and processes across Energy, ICT and Transport. The plan includes a number of concrete actions. One is to create a number of “lighthouse initiatives” that bring together groups of cities with industry and innovative SMEs from the ICT, energy, mobility and transport sector to deliver common Smart City solutions.

During the next years, these developments will provide new opportunities for pioneering regions and cities, e.g. the Helsinki Region, to position themselves as excellent partners in European projects for Horizon 2020, for other programs such as the Urban Europe Joint Programming Initiative, and for future KICs such as Healthy Living, Urban Mobility and Smart Societies. This calls for strong collaboration between relevant regional research and innovation actors, businesses and societal organisations in order to build a collaboration platform for enhancing multidisciplinary research and innovation, enabling them to engage in successful international collaboration at the European level. The following lists some illustrative examples of relevant themes for such collaboration. Secure, clean and efficient energy (SC10). In this priority area, the most important outcome is the call SCC1-‐2014/2015 on Smart Cities and Communities, aimed at integrating energy, transport and ICT solutions. The objective is to identify, develop and deploy replicable, balanced and integrated solutions in the energy, transport, and ICT actions through partnerships between municipalities and industries. Special topics include low-‐energy districts, integrated infrastructures, and sustainable urban mobility. Europe in a changing world – Inclusive, Innovative and Reflective Societies (SC13). A relevant call is the EURO-‐5-‐2015 ERA-‐NET on Smart Urban Futures. The proposed ERA-‐NET aims at coordinating the research efforts of the participating Member States, Associated States and Regions in the field described and to implement a joint transnational call for proposals with the EU co-‐funding for multinational innovative research initiatives in this domain. Relevant topics include European cities as hubs of creativity and innovation, Smart urban ecosystem services, open data creating thriving urban areas, and Urban Living Labs.

12 FI-‐PPP (www.fi-‐ppp.eu) is a 300-‐million-‐€ EC-‐funded programme and has a duration of 6 years (2011 – 2016). Aalto University (CKIR) has a prominent position as coordinator of the FI-‐PPP Programme Facilitation and Support project CONCORD. 13 http://www.eitictlabs.eu/about-‐us/nodes-‐co-‐location-‐centres/helsinki/

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Information and Communications Technology (LEIT). Within the Industrial Leadership pillar of Horizon 2020, ICT for industrial and societal impact is an important priority area (besides nanotechnology, biotechnology and other). Table 4 provides a selection of calls in the 2014-‐2015 timeframe that provide opportunities related to the Helsinki Smart Region as well as for individual parties such as Aalto University, VTT, Laurea, Forum Virium and others. Theme Relevant topics ICT1 – 2014 Smart Cyber-‐Physical Systems CPS platforms, homes, cars, transport systems, offices, cities.

Smart, cooperative and open CPS. CPS across sectors. ICT10 – 2015 Collective Awareness Platforms for Sustainability and Social Innovation

Pilots based on open data, open source, distributed social networking etc. Multi-‐disciplinary research on Collective Awareness Platforms. Digital social platforms targeting stakeholders often excluded from innovation.

ICT15 – 2015 Big Data and Open data innovation and take-‐up.

Open data supply chains. Technological and systemic data challenges that concern entire value chains and/or bridge across borders, languages, industries and sectors.

ICT18-‐ 2014 Support the Growth of ICT Innovative Creative Industries SMEs

Innovation actions to establish creative industries SME incubators.

ICT19 -‐ 2015 Technologies for creative industries, social media and convergence

3D, augmented reality for content creation, distribution and use.

ICT20 Technologies for better human learning and teaching

Smart learning environments.

ICT29-‐2015 Internet of Things and Platforms for Connected Smart Objects

Smart environments, platform interoperability, Health, energy, mobility and other.

ICT35 – 2014 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Support

ICT entrepreneurship labs. Experimental spaces to foster innovation-‐driven entrepreneurship.

Table 4. Information and Communication Technologies in Horizon 2020 (LEIT)

4.4 Opportunities for Smart Regions under Cohesion Policy In addition to the priority areas identified from the Horizon 2020 Progamme, the thematic focus of Cohesion Policy also enhances the economic growth and social cohesion of the Helsinki Region. Smart specialization strategies are in the forefront of priority, requiring commitment of national and regional authorities. The RIS3 platform provides assistance to identify these priorities14. As mentioned above, Uusimaa Regional Council has specified the S3 strategic choices as related to the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Programme. The information that has been submitted to the Eye@RIS3 is presented in Table 5. The Cohesion Policy instrument invests in growth and people mainly through European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and European Social Fund (ESF) to deliver the Europe 2020 goals. Some of the specific opportunities for the Helsinki Smart Region within ERDF include the following: • INTERREG Europe (calls expected open in January 2015): supporting the capacity of SMEs to

engage in growth in regional, national and international markets and in innovation processes; promoting low-‐carbon strategies for all types of territories.

• Baltic Sea Region Programme (calls expected open in November 2014): to strengthen the capacity for innovation through smart specialization.

• Central Baltic Programme (calls expected open in October 2014): Sustainable use of common resources, through better urban planning in the Central Baltic Region.

14 See: http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/activities/research-‐and-‐innovation/s3platform.cfm

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Cleantech Wellness technology and services

Technological solutions and services

Intelligent services (crosscutting)

EU priority Sustainable innovation Public health and security

KETs Digital Agenda

Capabilities Construction Transport and storage ICT

Human health and social work activities

R&D within manufacturing industry Transporting and storage ICT

ICT Services

Target markets

Construction Transport and storage manufacturing and industry Energy production and distribution water supply, sewage, waste management And remediation

Human health and social work activities Creative, cultural arts and entertainment

Manufacturing and industry Transporting and storage Creative, cultural arts and entertainment

Services Public administration, security and defence Human health and social work activities

Table 5. Helsinki-‐Uusimaa priorities submitted to S3 Table 6 summarizes the various funding instruments and regional development priorities as identified by the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Progamme in accordance with the S3.

Stru

ctur

al F

unds

Pro

gram

me

for

Mai

nlan

d Fi

nlan

d

Cen

tral B

altic

Inte

rreg

The

Bal

tic S

ea P

rogr

amm

e

Inte

rreg

Eur

ope

EN

I

Agr

icul

tura

l Fun

d Le

ader

Eur

opea

n M

ariti

me

and

Fish

erie

s Fu

nd

OPP

OR

TUN

ITIE

S FO

R

GR

OW

TH

Open development environments and intelligent services √ √ √ √ √ Regenerating business √ √ √ √ √

Environmental business (Cleantech) √ √ √ √ √ √ Urban food services √ √ Growth from the East √ √

PRA

CTI

CA

L EV

ERYD

AY

LI

FE

Intelligent and smooth traffic √ √ √ Comfortable housing and living environment √ √ √ Good work √ √ Immigration and integration √ √ Localness, local democracy and young people’s participation

√ √

SUST

AIN

AB

LE

ECO

LOG

Y

Natural diversity and natural resources √ √ √ √ √ √

Improving the state of waterways and the Baltic Sea √ √ √ √

Environmentally smart lifestyle √ Carbon neutral Helsinki-Uusimaa Region √ √ √ √ √ Table 6. Indicative financial possibilities under the Cohesion Policy for the implementation of

the Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Regional Programme

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5. Ambitions and Objectives of Helsinki Smart Region

5.1 Positioning Towards 2020 EU policy frameworks call for smart regions and cities as key actors in addressing global societal challenges. To meet the EU 2020 targets, the regions and local authorities need to translate grand challenges into regional and local priorities by developing regional innovation strategies based on smart specialisation. Digital and real-‐life Open Innovation ecosystems need to be adopted by innovation policy makers in Europe. Cities and regions, being closest to the citizens and SMEs, need to adopt regional innovation strategies, not only to maximize the societal impact of innovation but also to increase local innovation capacity and growth, building digital literacy and encouraging development in general. Future smart cities and regions need to implement future Internet service infrastructures, based on open architectures and standards, which allow interoperability, privacy and data portability. In order to boost regional competitiveness in a global economy, regional innovation ecosystems need to be embedded in global innovation grids. Orchestration, management, public-‐private-‐people-‐partnerships as well as strategic alliances are crucial elements of a regional innovation ecosystem strategy. The realization of a bottom-‐up innovation ecosystem, grounded in the backbone of connected “assets,” is highly relevant for the Helsinki Smart Region. These assets include research and innovation testbed facilities, Living Labs, venturing activities, innovative programmes and projects, and active collaboration among various stakeholders and entities such as research and innovation institutes, start-‐ups and SMEs, larger companies, venture capital and policy actors. The balance between bottom-‐up innovation activities and top-‐down strategies is a fundamental condition for sustainability. Cities and regions would be testbeds for research and innovation15. The creation of Local Digital Agendas is a useful exercise in integrating the Digital Agenda into European-‐ and regional-‐level digitalization activities to serve the local and regional needs in tackling societal challenges, e.g. creating regional priorities and smart specialization strategies and bridging the gap between research and market. This also has further implications for RDI funding, as it increases the effectiveness and impact of activities through so-‐called national/regional and innovation strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3). These are of particular importance, as within the post-‐2014 EU Cohesion Policy, smart specialisation strategies will become a prerequisite for receiving financial funding through EU Structural and Investment Funds. Finland and Helsinki Region are well positioned to meet future challenges posed on their innovation ecosystems. Finland is ranked as one of the key innovation leaders. However, there are some weaknesses in the Finnish system, in particular regarding growth, entrepreneurship and internationalization. The Finnish innovation system has much to gain from integration in the single European market for goods and services, as well as in the European Research and Higher Education Area. The main challenge is to further increase innovativeness through collaborative practice, leveraging Finland’s ability to be a global forerunner in innovation ecosystems and harboring its passion to test and use new solutions.

15 The FIREBALL project in FP7-‐ICT has explored the concept of smart cities as innovation ecosystems for experimenting the Future Internet.

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5.2 Enhancing the Helsinki Region Innovation Ecosystem In order to further improve the Helsinki Region’s innovation ecosystems capacity, a number of objectives can be defined. Many objectives and areas for action have been identified and described in the previous chapters of this document. In addition, we have defined in the following a few recommendations which will be reviewed in more detail in the on-‐going Helsinki Region RIS3 process. The first main area of recommendations for Helsinki’s regional innovation ecosystem is the need to pay special attention to the orchestration of the local innovation policy and action amongst regional authorities, municipalities, universities, businesses, and civil society. The quality, effectiveness and impact of the Helsinki Region’s Horizon 2020 activities can be increased remarkably by creating more synergy between the operations of all the main RDI actors in the Region. The second target is to explore in more detail the smart specialisation strategies in areas such as ICT for digital health, education and other service industry applications. The Region can and should be a pioneer in tackling several burning societal challenges in these areas. The third aim is to change governance regulations and to implement experimenting and prototyping in co-‐creating collaborative platforms and interface processes for the open architectures and open standards that the future Internet ecosystem and smart cities and regions will be built on. This opens up, in reality, the national, regional and local government data to facilitate digital services development. In addition, it is important that the local and regional rules governing participation and funding allow and attract the involvement of all potential RDI actors in multifinanced EU projects and encourage their effective networking both regionally and at EU level. To achieve the targets set, measures, rules and guidelines of the Member States and regional authorities is crucial. The fourth goal is to change regulations and create incentives for young entrepreneurs – for example, setting up and increasing small-‐scale funding instruments targeted at the business processes of entrepreneurial start-‐ups and SMEs, enabling piloting and prototyping at an early stage of the development process. EU financing opportunities, e.g. the European Investment Fund, should be explored. Finally, an activity plan is to be created for European-‐wide practical collaboration on innovation networking, building, among others, on the work initiated during 2010 – 2013 by the Vanguard Group (regions of Catalunya, Friesland, Flanders, and Helsinki) and other regions, with the emphasis on increasing collaboration and synergies both within and between regions. This should lead to setting up several inter-‐ecosystem strategic alliances based on and complementing the members’ regional smart specialisation strategies. This will eventually lead to the integration of these innovation networks in the global innovation grid.

5.3 Helsinki Smart Region and International Collaboration To achieve the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy, regions should be well connected on a European scale, and especially be part of connected innovation ecosystems. The Helsinki Region is already exploring such collaborative forms of innovation practice. One potentially powerful example of this kind of collaboration is the link between the regions Helsinki – Skåne – Amsterdam, which will be further developed for European pioneering in order to create ground-‐breaking societal innovations for Europe-‐wide application. This collaboration originated as part of the 2012 Aalto Societal Innovation Camp (ACSI), an innovative international programme co-‐initiated in 2010 by Aalto University and the New Club of Paris. The three regions worked together to explore diverse practical aspects of the question ‘How can we create an inclusive and fully accessible society, in which all citizens can contribute to co-‐creating quality of life?’

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At ACSI, promising approaches were developed to find new answers to societal challenges, such as turning innovativeness the common state of mind in pioneering innovative city hubs, creating prerequisites for societal innovation testbeds, demonstrating innovations in both real-‐life and virtual reality, and speeding up the on-‐going ICT Cluster revolution as an accelerator for job creation and growth. Insights into the new kinds of collaboration required realizing this – reciprocal relationships and relevant roles for government and civil society – were exchanged in the ACSI camps in Helsinki and Espoo in 2012 and in Malmö in 2013. Based on the encouraging results, these have been further explored in the continuing discussions between Helsinki, Skåne, and Amsterdam regions. The initial collaboration at ACSI can lead to the effective exchange and promising solutions between the three regions, and – in the context of EU2020 and Innovation Union initiatives – to opportunities for piloting new European partnership experiments and broader inter-‐regional innovation initiatives in the future. The ACSI concept continues to pioneer new approaches to tackling societal challenges, and will link the Helsinki Region to relevant potential partners in smart regions across Europe and around the world. In the future, these and other societal questions with a strong link to regional smart specialisation strategies will power this concept of collaborative and innovative European partnerships. Within the context of Horizon 2020 and Cohesion policy Funds, the Helsinki Region aims to collaborate with other cities and regions on shared longer-‐term strategies and objectives as well as complementary competencies and assets.

5.4 Conclusions and Follow-‐Up This paper discussed the opportunities and challenges for the Helsinki Smart Region, and in particular the Espoo Innovation Garden area, in the context of European 2020 policies and initiatives aimed towards creating connected Smart Cities and Regions. The diversity and strength of the Helsinki Region innovation ecosystem has been demonstrated. The Region is well positioned as a pioneering region in implementing the Europe 2020 Strategy and as an attractive partner for collaboration with other cities and regions. We conclude with some final points for further discussion. Helsinki Region Collaborative Network and Breeding Ground The Helsinki Smart Region brings together a diverse set of stakeholders and initiatives with at least partly common objectives. With respect to the objectives for the future, this collaboration network may be strengthened into the direction of: • Regular exchanges of information in relation to H2020 and Cohesion Policy funding opportunities

and calls. • Facilitating discussions on potential proposals and building European-‐wide consortia. • Supporting the joint development of proposals. • Collaboration in the organization of events and exchanges. • Establishing a breeding ground for initiating and developing new research and innovation

initiatives for the Helsinki Smart Region. • Establishing a platform providing access to any projects to a rich spectrum of testbeds, Living Lab

facilities, datasets, user environments, experts and other resources. Objectives of Collaboration Among Regions in Europe A key point is the overall approach and strategic goals in establishing collaboration with other regions. The following levels of collaboration can be distinguished. • One level is the level of exchanges and best practice learning. This already is an important level

and several collaborations and contacts are have been established, for example with regions such as Valencia, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Malmö, and Thessaloniki. Other regions with rich research and innovation ecosystem and Smart City assets provide excellent opportunities for collaboration.

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• Another level of collaboration is the common vision and roadmap building. The upcoming ERA-‐NET call in Horizon 2020 provides a good opportunity to establish a European vision network in smart cities and regions. The Helsinki Smart Region is willing to collaborate with other regions to create such a network.

• Furthermore, at the level of research and innovation itself, the priority is to collaboratively develop, test and adopt and validate technologies in Smart Region settings, in order to accelerate development and testing cycles and time to market. For this, regions willing to collaborate may bring together complementary resources and assets as a foundation for creating synergies.

European Networks and Project Opportunities to Strengthen the Innovation Ecosystem This paper identified a number of European-‐level project opportunities in Horizon 2020 and Cohesion Policy that could help the Helsinki Smart Region to strengthen its ecosystem and engage in cross-‐regional collaboration. European-‐level networks such as the Connected Smart Cities network constitute an important network of contacts. The Helsinki Smart Region aims to be actively represented there. The same applies to the European Network of Living Labs where several Helsinki Region partners are represented (Forum Virium as Chair, as well as Laurea University of Applied Sciences and Aalto University).

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Appendix 1: Sources and References

• Aalto University: Research Plans for the RIE workpackage in the EUE Program for the years 2013-‐2015. • City of Helsinki Espoo Vantaa (2013): Application of Helsinki Metropolitan Area to the Finnish National

Innovative Cities Programme. • Committee of the Regions CoR (2012): Opinion on “the Role of Local and Regional Authorities in Achieving

the Objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy”, CdR 72/2011 final, Rapporteur Markku Markkula. • Committee of the Region CoR (2013): Opinion “Closing the Innovation Divide”, CdR 2414/2012 final,

Rapporteur Markku Markkula • Culminatum Innovation Ltd (2013): Digital Smart Cities • EU Regional Policy, Smart Specialisation Platform, RIS3 Guide 12.12.2011 • European Commission, Smart Specialisation Plattform: Digital Agenda Toolbox. See:

http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/dae-‐toolbox • European Commission, Europe 2020 Strategy: http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/index_en.htm • European Commission, Digital Agenda for Europe: http://ec.europa.eu/digital-‐agenda/ • European Commission, Smart Specialisation Platform: http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/home • European Commission (2012): Smart Cities and Communities – European Innovation Partnership.

C(2012) 4701 final, 10.07.2012. • European Commission (2014): European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities.

Strategic Implementation Plan (October 2013). See also: http://ec.europa.eu/eip/smartcities/ • EIT ICT Labs, Helsinki node: http://www.eitictlabs.eu/about-‐us/nodes-‐co-‐location-‐centres/helsinki/ • Helsinki Region (2012): Elinvoimainen Metropoli tulevaisuuden tekijät 2025. • Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region, Application for the European Entrepreneurial Region Award, January 2010. • Hoyer, Bruno (Ed.) (2012): Helsinki Region Local digital Agenda – Work in Progress. Working Paper. • Komninos, Nicos, Mark Pallot, Hans Schaffers (2013): Open Innovation Towards Smarter Cities. In:

European Commission, Open Innovation Yearbook 2013. • Lappalainen, Pia and Markku Markkula (Eds.) (2013): The Knowledge Triangle. Re-‐Inventing the

Future. • Manninen, Asta: Open data, open Cities. Case Helsinki Region Infoshare. www.hri.fi • Markkula, Markku and Hank Kune (2013): Horizon 2020: Regional Innovation Ecosystems: from theory

to practice. In: European Commission, Open Innovation Yearbook 2013. • Markkula, Markku, Pia Lappalainen and Kari MIkkelä (2013): Learning Spaces as Accelerators of

Innovation Ecosystem Development. In: e-‐Learning Papers, Issue 34 / October 2013, http://elearningeuropa.info

• Metropolitan Inc.: Metro regions and their unique assets. An assessment of specialised clusters in Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen.

• RYM Ltd (2012): Energizing Urban Ecosystems Programme. Research Plan 2012. • Schaffers, Hans, Nicos Komninos and Marc Pallot (Eds.) (2012): Smart Cities as Innovation Ecosystems

Sustained by the Future Internet. White Paper of the FIREBALL project. Download at: www.fireball4smartcities.eu.

• Still, Kaisa, Jukka Huhtamäki, Martha Russell, Rahul Basole, Jaakko Salonen, Neil Rubens (2013): Networks of Innovation relationships: Multiscope Views on Finland. XXIV ISPIM Conference on Innovating in Global Markets: Challenges for Sustainable Growth (www.ispim.org)

• T3 Espoo Innovation Garden Facts and Figures (2013). • Urban Europe Joint Programming Initiative: http://www.jpi-‐urbaneurope.eu/ • Urban Mill – Building IntenCity! http://urbanmill.org • Uusimaa Regional Council (2013): Uusimaa Programme. Vision and Strategy 2040. Strategic Choices

2014 – 2017. • VTT (2012): InnoCity. Scaling Up Urban Innovations. • Wallin, Johan (Ed.) (2012): Eco Urban Living. Espoo as an Innovation Hub in 2020.

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Appendix 2: Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region Facts

The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region (also called Helsinki Region or Uusimaa Region), is at the heart of Northern Europe. It is situated on the south coast of Finland and is home to around 1.5 million inhabitants, which is 29 percent of the country’s total population.

Its location on the Baltic Sea, its cultural climate and its green landscapes have made it a growing centre for new European business and politics. The region as a whole is characterized by a strong historical and social identity. It is being developed as one integrated area. The Helsinki-‐Uusimaa Region consists of 26 municipalities: Askola, Espoo, Hanko, Helsinki, Hyvinkää, Ingå, Järvenpää, Karkkila, Kauniainen, Kerava, Kirkkonummi, Lapinjärvi, Lohja, Loviisa, Myrskylä, Mäntsälä, Nurmijärvi, Pornainen, Porvoo, Pukkila, Raseborg, Sipoo, Siuntio, Tuusula, Vantaa and Vihti. Statistics Area (2013) •Total km²: 16 059 •Land km²: 9 097 •Fresh Water km²: 471 •Sea Water km²: 6 491

By mother tongue (2012) •Finnish: 82,2 % •Swedish: 8,5 % •Other: 9,3 %

GDP per capita (2010) •136 (Index, Finland=100) •45 476 €

Population (2013) •Total: 1 566 800

Employed (2010) •Total 744 820 •32 % of Finland

Unemployment rate •7,2 % (Whole country 9,8 %)

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Appendix 3: Horizon 2020 and Cohesion Policy Opportunities

Horizon 2020 and Cohesion Policy programmes provide attractive opportunities for projects that represent the Helsinki Region development priorities. In order to establish collaborations among different regions, it is desirable to set up a roadmap, on the one hand, of programs and deadlines for calls, and on the other hand, of thematic priorities of regions. The currently fixed opening dates or deadlines for calls in May 2014 are the following: • European Regional Development Fund: June-‐August 2014 • European Social Fund: June-‐August 2014 • Central Baltic Programme: October 2014 • Baltic Sea Region: November 2014 • Interreg Europe: January 2015 • Horizon 2020: call opening dates and deadlines for 2014-‐2015 have been published16. An initial roadmap of priority themes and program call opening dates (O) and submission deadlines (D) is depicted below. For the Cohesion Policy instruments, the opening dates are expected dates, and closing dates are not yet fixed at the publication time of this 2nd edition (May 2014). For Horizon 2020, the Work Programme 2014-‐2015 with detailed information concerning the calls in the different thematic areas 2014-‐2015 was published at the end of 2013.

BSR: Baltic Sea Region; CB: Central Baltic; INT: Interreg; ESF: European Social Fund;

ERDF: European regional Development Fund; H2020: Horizon 2020 Based on the available call information, the Helsinki Region parties may now start planning their project development actions and collaborations with other regions based on the Helsinki Region strategic priorities. 16 Participant portal : http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/home.html

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