1. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 SUPPORTING INNOVATION THROUGH ICT : Sharing Good Practices – Benefits & Challenges by Gareth Hughes (Project Director, IANIS + )

2. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 IANIS + Initiative of 44 regions (including 5 NMS regions as associate members)

3. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 IANIS + Initiative of 44 regions (including 5 NMS regions as associate members)

4. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 IANIS + Initiative of 44 regions (including 5 NMS regions as associate members)

5. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 IANIS + Initiative of 44 regions (including 5 NMS regions as associate members) 2.068 mill, co-financed by the EC (DG Regional Policy) Led by the Free State of Saxony (Managing Authority) Managed by a Steering Committee (of the regions – 9 meetings) and coordinated by eris@ Mar 05 – Nov 07: follow-up to IANIS (2002-04) – aiming to provide more effective mechanisms to facilitate sharing information, experience and good practice between regions – both by face-to-face meetings and virtual exchanges; build a bridge between EU-15 regions and regions of the NMS; and undertake analyses of regional good practices in terms of innovative projects, programming, processes and organisation to help accelerate regional development and cohesion

6. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 4.2 Regional Good Practice Research & Peer Reviews 4.1 Annual Conferences & Policy Seminars 4.4 Thematic Work Groups 4.5 Dissemination Activities 4.3 Intensive Training Course Case Study Reports Guides Case Study Reports Training Materials Conference Proceedings Main Elements of the Work Programme

7. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 1: Conferences & Policy Seminars Lille, June 2005 Blekinge, June 2006Bilbao, June 2007 Conclusions disseminated and communicated to the EC

8. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 1: Conferences & Policy Seminars 1.Infrastructure (Broadband & the Digital Divide) 2.Networks of Research, Innovation & Deployment 3.From eBusiness to Smart Business 4.Regions and eHealth 5.eLearning for Regional Development 6.Infrastructure & Next Generation Networks 7.Indicators & benchmarking 8.eGovernment for Regions Conclusions disseminated and communicated to the EC

9. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 2: Regional Good Practice Research & Peer Reviews More than 140 project case studies were submitted by regional experts 60 selected for publication Thematic Analysis 9 Peer Review Visits

10. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 3: Summer School Call for students and faculty Consultation about curriculum content 5-day programme (Torino – Oct 06) 38 students from 23 regions 21 faculty Teaching & learning materials available at the eRegion Hub

11. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 4: Thematic Work Groups 6 Groups (Infrastructure, eBusiness, eGovernment, eLearning, eHealth, Indicators & Benchmarking) Chaired by a regional expert and supported by the Coordination Unit 23 meetings took place + virtual collaborative work through forum etc. Collection of project case studies Publication of 6 Guides to Good Practice

12. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 5: Dissemination Web portal (eRegion Hub at www.ianis.net)www.ianis.net 3,500 registered users 1750+ events 2250+ news items Web 2.0 tools (wiki, forums, etc.)

13. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Action Line 5: Dissemination - 2 Monthly Newsletter 33 editions 171 contributions from regions Focus on good practice projects 4000+ downloads per month

14. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Work Group Good Practice by the Infrastructure Work Group Survey of regions in 2006 (with DG Infso and CoR) Report published Jan 2007 With eris@ provided support to EC for the exhibition of the Bridging the Broadband Gap conference, May 2007 eris@ has won the service contract to launch a web portal (European Broadband Exchange) to support stakeholders in their efforts to overcome market failure in under-served territories BridgingtheBroadbandGap www.broadband-europe.eu

15. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Work Group Good Practice by the Infrastructure Work Group Stakeholders/users Public authorities Policy makers Industry Academics / consultants Content / databases GP projects Strategies & action plans Calls for tender Industry notices Decisions and legal cases www.broadband-europe.eu

16. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Work Group Good Practice by the Infrastructure Work Group Stakeholders/users Public authorities Policy makers Industry Academics / consultants Content / databases GP projects Strategies & action plans Calls for tender Industry notices Decisions and legal cases EXPECTED LAUNCH June 2008 www.broadband-europe.eu

17. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Benefits & Challenges Avoid re-inventing the wheel Accelerate development, encourage innovation Reduce/share risks – avoid mistakes and blind alleys Reduce wasteful duplication (Europe does not need 150,000 CRM systems !!) – get better value for money Cooperation and collaboration – rather than competing.

18. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Benefits & Challenges The NIH Syndrome …. but, equally, the need to adapt (not copy blindly) How to find effective ways to capture, store, disseminate and use good practice solutions – need for a solutions sharing network (policies, programmes, projects and even systems) Coping with differences of language and diverse cultures Identifying and reporting good practices is an art form – not everyone has the skills (training). Its not easy and … its not cheap either. Motivating successful projects/implementations to document their successes. The difficulty of finding and reporting failures and bad practices. The VITAL importance of inter-regional networking, and regional networking strategies – and the ongoing need for EC support.

19. Innovative Actions Network for the Information Society - PLUS IANIS + was coordinated by The European Regional Information Society Association IANIS + was co-financed by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) + REGIONS for ECONOMIC CHANGE - Sharing Excellence Brussels, 25-26 February 2008 Thank you for your attention ghughes@irisi.u-net.com