SWAM

Increasing the regional competitiveness and economic growth through the R&TD&I on sustainable water management

 Partecipanti

Mappa

 Word cloud

Esplora la "nuvola delle parole (Word Cloud) per avere un'idea di massima del progetto.

 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'The availability of water resources is a key contributory factor to economic and social development, as well as being an essential pillar of environmental preservation. The most of the Mediterranean regions, with a semi-arid climate, has historically suffered from water scarcity. This has led in many cases to a strong culture in the efficient use of water and development of innovative policies and techniques relating to sustainable water management. Within this context, some Mediterranean regions have developed effective research-driven clusters focused on sustainable and efficient management of water, and dedicate considerable resources to research, technical development and innovation (R&TD&I) activities in this field. The SWAM Project is proposed to supply preconditions for further economic growth and global competitiveness of Murcia, Eastern-Galilee and Western Greece regions having high potential in the Water Technologies (Water-Tech) sector. The Project will develop an Action Plan (JAP) with the collaboration of these three regions, through mutual understanding of the respective research systems, coordinating their science policies as well as sharing the best practices and experiences in order to draw a pathway regarding: - Integration of synergies among these clusters, strengthening their internal capabilities and joining efforts in water technologies R&TD&I in order to develop world-wide this leading market. - Overcoming the current financial crisis as much as possible, by mobilizing other financial possibilities afforded by national/regional authorities, the private sector and by Community programmes. The project offers a cross-cutting effect over the participants’ regional economies, since water technologies are applied to all economic and productive sectors. There is also an innovative approach behind the idea which supports these clusters: to increase the regional economy growth and competitiveness matched with environmental preservation.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

Communities, societies and even industrial regions require water to thrive and grow.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

Water resources are being severely challenged as the world population continues to grow, global warming goes unabated and there is an ever-decreasing water supply. With many Mediterranean regions being semi-arid, the requirement for effective and innovative water techniques is critical. SWAM, an EU-funded project, defined as its primary objective the establishment of a common dialogue platform for three key players to set up a joint action plan.

The focus of this plan was to discover the means through which these water-tech cluster regions could maximise their capacity for research and technological development (RTD) investment. Such investment can ultimately lead to economic growth, sustainable development and global competitiveness. Greece, Israel and Spain were involved in this joint action plan and achieved several short-term objectives.

One key goal was to attain a deeper understanding of the research infrastructure of the regions, as well as the support policy schemes. Another was to establish a common dialogue to maximise coordination between differing research agendas. Of interest were the mentoring/learning exchanges in which these three regions each collaborated with another region. (Cyprus mentored by Israel, Turkey by Spain and Albania by Greece).

SWAM had several noteworthy impacts through many of its conferences, seminars and promotional materials. It succeeded in raising awareness, mapping regional competitiveness, developing a web portal and widely disseminating relevant information.