Mar 9, 2022
We are kicking off co-design workshops in each of the targeted Western Balkan regions.
The mentioned workshops are part of the whole process of reflection and co-design of RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives which aims to engage WB partners and quadruple helix stakeholders to discuss enhancement of openness, inclusiveness and responsibility of their institutions and territorial ecosystems.
Our team has been working on this issue within the work package 3 (WP3), led and coordinated by SEERC. This work package overall triggers a reflection process activating the participatory co-design of the RRI (Responsible Research & Innovation) ‘anchor’ initiatives in each WB region. The co-design of the ‘anchors’ will be realised and completed throughout three different but complementary to each other tasks.
Options and scenarios for institutional changes
The first task has already been completed and referred to the realisation of a foresight exercise during the WBC-RRI.NET future scenario workshop, resulting with the development of fifteen future scenarios (“WBC-RRI.NET future 2024 scenarios”). Each WB territory developed a set of future scenarios while reflecting on the RRI-driven institutional and territorial transformations they wish to achieve in their R&I and STI ecosystems upon project completion (i.e. 2024). These scenarios represent simulations of some possible futures, and are the following:
- Kune-Vain-Tale Lagoon, territory of Qark of Lezhë (Albania)
Scenario 1: Disaster-Prone Socio-Ecological System
Scenario 2: Highly Resilient Socio-Ecological System
Scenario 3: Ready for disaster
- Republic of Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Scenario 1: No change on the horizon
Scenario 2: Time for R&I and STI to flourish!
- Country of Montenegro
Scenario 1: Sustainable Saltwork Production in Montenegro
Scenario 2: Technological Progress without Power
Scenario 3: Saltworks without the Salt
- Skopje region (North Macedonia)
Scenario 1: A territory torn between growth and decline
Scenario 2: Territory at its best
Scenario 3: How to deal with the territory’s development?
- Autonomous province of Vojvodina (Serbia)
Scenario 1: Profile and cooperation flourish
Scenario 2: Empty cooperation
Scenario 3: Good isolated islands
Scenario 4: Black hole
Reflection and participatory co-design of the RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives
All the future 2024 scenarios function as a basis for proceeding to the second task and the actual co-design of the RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives. The representatives of each WB territory are organising a series of open regional workshops, entailing the participation of representatives of the various Quadruple Helix groups. During the workshops, participants vote on the preferred scenario and provide their overall feedback towards the design (content and implementation plan) of the regional RRI ‘anchor’ initiative. The aim of the workshops is also to foster an exchange of experiences among the various actors of the same territory and a genuine participatory and co-design process, so as to reach a common vision for the territory.
Peer-review of the RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives
Once the regional workshops have been completed and a first version of the design for each one of RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives has been produced, an internal peer-review process will take place. The designs of the ‘anchors’ will be reviewed by members of the consortium and by members of the External Advisory Board (EAB), ultimately leading to the development of a comprehensive selection including the five final designs of all RRI ‘anchor’ initiatives.
Follow us in the upcoming period if you want to learn more about this topic through the event reviews of each of the regional workshops!
If you are interested in contributing to the co-design process, feel free to contact us through info@wbc-rri.net. We are available for communication in the following languages: English, Serbian, Greek, French, German, Albanian, Bosnian, Macedonian or Montenegrin.