Gabrovo during and after the TeRRItoria project
Gabrovo’s participation in the TeRRitoria project contributed to the process of achievement of the long-term development vision of the city as green, smart, and innovative. The two key aims of the Gabrovo transformative experiment carried out are to increase public engagement in its Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) development and to promote science education. Project implementation required addressing general public effectively and establishing effective and sustainable inter-sectoral relations.
The initial part of the experiment consisted of the co-design process that turned out to be a successful undertaking, realized in the changing and challenging unprecedented circumstances of Covid-19. The process set out the conditions of the transformative experiment realized in its core by the continuous work of the focus group on economy, innovation, and human capital that worked on socio-economic analyses, turning into a base for development of a shared territorial vision. The group identified ideas and defined territory-relevant development priorities, outlining in the process the main joint projects for the upcoming programming period.
All the TeRRItoria project activities were realized not only in complete transparency, publicity and promotion but inevitably involving the quadruple helix actors in the process.
Within the TeRRItoria project, the Public engagement plan for S3 development and S3 were elaborated, involving science education as an inseparable item of the innovative and smart territorial development. The Public engagement plan was elaborated owing to the professional support of the national research partner ARC- FUND that provided expert and external perspective in the development process.
The Gabrovo S3 is an integral and essential part of the Integrated plan for development of Gabrovo for the programming period of 2021 -2027. The S3 focuses on:
- Industry and Innovation – promoting the development of the local economy, with a focus on high-tech industries and knowledge-intensive services, investment in technical and business infrastructure and improving the innovation environment, circular economy and carbon neutrality;
- Science and education – cooperation of local business with educational institutions, with a focus on the training and recruitment of talents, investment in scientific infrastructure and technology transfer, close cooperation between public science and technology units and local companies;
- Digitalisation – digital transformation of industry and public sector, increasing capacity and digital skills, improving management processes and strengthening partnerships with citizens and businesses.
The documents developed provide a solid framework for future development. Their implementation will be detailed in supporting documents, projects, specific initiatives and undertaking of various formats that will involve the quadruple helix actors. The realization of these future measures, plans, projects, etc. is to be followed by implementation indicators and applicable success criteria. This will facilitate the long-term goals achievement that is inevitably a subject of impact evaluation and analyses to be followed by process refinement and adjustment.
Gabrovo after the TeRRItoria project will keep working on:
- Realization of RRI activities
- Implementation of the Public engagement plan for S3 development and S3;
- Introduction of RRI in business and in scientific research and education;
- Introduction of STEM/STEAM in the education;
- Realization of Joint initiatives of the quadruple helix actors.
