Delighted to be participating on the Spanning Boundaries Programme, understanding what it takes to become a Spanning Boundaries Agent – https://www.spanning-boundaries.eu/

‘After the launch of the Europe 2020 strategy and the EU Growth Agenda, Europe has taken the path to create a more connected relationship between society, government, business and higher education institutions (HEIs) in order to increase employment, productivity and social cohesion. However, despite the strong policy support, cooperation among the key actors in Europe is still in the early stages of development, and their interaction remains insufficient. In that, the recent reports by EU Smart Specialisation Platform and JRC particularly emphasize the need for “boundary spanners” in the innovation ecosystem, individuals who have deep understanding of both business and academia. This capacity is increasingly deemed crucial among the university staff in the entrepreneurial discovery and smart specialisation processes of the HEIs, to support transfer and exchange of knowledge. The nature of the barriers that hinder regional engagement include “lack of ‘boundary spanning skills in the university” and “lack of leadership to drive change”.