AII SG attending AI-NURECC PLUS High-level launch event – 2 July 2021
Amb. Castellaneta – AII Secretary General – attended the AI-NURECC high-level launch event on July 2nd 2021 (online), organized by the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR), Coordinator of the Adriatic Ionian Network of Universities, Regions, Chambers of Commerce and Cities PLUS.
This launch event of the AI-NURECC PLUS Initiative focused on the challenges to be addressed and the priorities of this productive multilevel cooperation to support the post-pandemic recovery.
The Adriatic Ionian Network of Universities, Regions, Chambers of Commerce and Cities Initiative PLUS (AI-NURECC PLUS) is a preparatory action financed by DG REGIO that will capitalise on the results of the AI-NURECC Initiative, ended in December 2019.
This project is coordinated by the CPMR with the support of four partners from the area: the Adriatic Ionian Euroregion (AIE), the Forum of Adriatic and Ionian Cities (FAIC), the Forum of the Adriatic and Ionian Chambers of Commerce (FORUM AIC), and the Association of Universities of the Adriatic Ionian area (UniAdrion).
The AI-NURECC PLUS partners have joined their efforts to support the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Sea Region (EUSAIR) implementation, ensuring deep and broad territorial coverage while enhancing Regional and Local Authorities’ appropriation of the EUSAIR main objectives and opportunities in the EUSAIR cross-pillar topics: “Research and Innovation”, “SMEs Development”, and “Skills Development”. AI-NURECC PLUS will therefore support entrepreneurship, transnational clusters, and digital innovation hubs activities for the EUSAIR.
Special attention will be paid to Youth, also through initiatives addressed to sport, integration and social inclusion, tools that are expected to further encourage community sustainable development, cohesion and solidarity in the area. AI-NURECC PLUS also aims at encouraging multi-actor networking and collaboration among representatives of the private and public sectors and civil society to foster coordination among EU, national, regional, and local policies to develop Circular Economy.
In this context, AI-NURECC PLUS will operate in the following fields: Sustainable Tourism, Cultural and Creative Industries, and Circular Economy.
Amb. Castellaneta expressed full support to the project during his opening statement: “A project like this, which aims to support the European Union Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR) implementation and to promote a more effective cooperation among Regional and Local Authorities, Universities, Chambers of Commerce, youth associations and networks, entrepreneurs and civil society, ensuring deep and broad territorial coverage, at regional and local level, can only have our support, in the belief that with subsidiarity and with the involvement of a qualified civil society, the Strategy can make a quality step forward” (here the full statement).