CHERRIES Evaluation Committee announces the four CHERRIES Mirror Regions

Last 29^th of November, the CHERRIES Evaluation Committee selected the four Mirror Regions that will replicate the methodology of the CHERRIES demand-driven innovation methodology with their own resources and the support of the CHERRIES consortium The Committee, composed of regional representatives of each one of the pilot territories and the project coordinator, assessed the applications received under different parameters to choose the most suitable regions to carry out the whole process. The applications selected were proposed by: Burgos (Spain), Coimbra (Portugal), Nord East (Romania), and West of Ireland (Ireland).

The selected Mirror Regions gathered within their consortiums outstanding entities able to implement the different stages of the methodology: the need identification through a bottom-up process, the release of a call for solutions aimed at solving the identified challenge, and the co-creation process of the final solution. Hence, we are glad to give a warm welcome on board to the associations from Burgos: The Society for the development of the province of Burgos (SODEBUR) and the European Business and Innovation Centre of Burgos (CEEI Burgos); from Coimbra: The Comissão de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional do Centro (CCDRC), Instituto Pedro Nunes and Universidade de Coimbra; from Nord East: The North East Regional Development Agency (North East RDA), the North East Regional Innovative Cluster for Structural and Molecular Imaging (Imago-Mol) and the hospital PROVIDENTA; and from West of Ireland: The Western Development Commission (WDC), CISCO, the Health Services Executive Digital Transformation Group and the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG).

Those graceful regions will be rewarded with direct support from the pilot regions and the CHERRIES consortium to implement the methodology within their territories. In consequence, they will benefit from different services such as webinars and workshops to get to know in detail how to launch and set the stage for the different phases in their territories, one-on-one coaching support from a paired pilot region with the aim of sharing experiences, best-practices, know-how and to help to overcome common obstacles; or the possibility to widen their network through activities like face-to-face meetings in Brussels with the CHERRIES team and other experts.

On the 20^th of January 2022 will be held a kick-off event to launch the activities prepared for the Mirror Regions and to introduce them to the representatives of the CHERRIES pilot regions.