In recent years, Casa Asia has developed important work in managing international projects, especially those promoted by the European Union, in order to channel the participation of economic agents, universities, research centers, companies, etc., in programs of great interest to all those entities that wish to strengthen their ties with the Asia-Pacific region.
European EU-Japan Region-to-Region Innovation Cooperation Program
This is a European Union project managed by Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) and the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) of the European Commission and implemented in cooperation with the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). The main objective of the program is cooperation in innovation between European regions and Japanese prefectures in the areas of green transition (circular economy, clean energy, climate change and sustainable mobility), industrial transformation (digitalization and social innovation) and demographic transition and competitiveness (public services and infrastructure in regions with depopulation and aging). On the European side, the regions of Val d'Oise (France), Emilia-Romagna (Italy), Basque Country (Spain), Ljubjana (Slovenia), Auvergne Rhône Alpes (France) and Catalonia (Spain) participate. Casa Asia, organized as part of the EU-Japan R2R team.
Preparation of reports
The Asia section of the International Urban Cooperation Program of the European Union (IUC-Asia) posted el EU-China Regional Innovation Joint Study, a study on regional innovation between the European Union (EU) and China, coordinated during 2020 from Casa Asia.
The study compares the European and Chinese approaches to regional innovation, also analyzing six case studies from regions and provinces in China and the EU: Basque Country (Spain), Baden-Württemberg (Germany), Central (Portugal), Jiangsu, Shandong and Chengdu-Chongqing (China).
Thus, while in Europe the leadership of the regions predominates in the design of the different innovation strategies through smart specialization policies (RIS3), in the Chinese case the impact of the central government is much more pronounced, although the provinces and cities have an increasingly important role in the development of their own strategies adapted to the characteristics of each place. The importance of the so-called triple helix (cooperation between the government, universities and companies) for the success of any innovation plan at the regional or provincial level, both in China and Europe, has also been confirmed.
International Urban Cooperation Program www.iuc.eu
Casa Asia Since 2017, it has participated in the International Urban Cooperation program of the General Directorate of Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) dedicated to promoting urban cooperation with Asia on issues related to innovation in city management and sustainable development (biodiversity conservation , energy efficiency, use of renewable energy, sustainable urban mobility, etc.). With this objective, missions of representatives of European companies and institutions have been organized to several Chinese cities, as well as the activity agendas of several Chinese delegations that, within the framework of the program, visit the city of Barcelona coinciding with the celebration of the Smart City World Congress.
World Cities Program www.world-cities.eu
Since 2015, Casa Asia participates in the “World Cities” program of the European Union aimed at international cooperation between European cities and Asian cities, through the General Directorate of Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO). The objective is to contribute to the exchange of good practices, successful experiences and share scientific and technological advances in the matter. To this end, missions have been organized for representatives of companies and institutions from Barcelona to China and South Korea, and working sessions of delegations from China, Indonesia and South Korea with their respective European counterparts in the city of Barcelona.