Imagine IF...

"Society was driven by innovation; challenges would be seen as opportunities"

The Innovation Festivals are a celebration of innovation and creativity across six European cities - Barcelona, Kortrijk, Milano, Lisboa, Vilnius and Tallinn - mobilising their citizens, youth, businesses, researchers and other regional players to broaden their minds and be part of multiple events. These events will not only showcase excellence and innovativeness, but also address important societal challenges such as boosting creativity, tackling climate change or decreasing mobility barriers in urban environments.

The power of innovation and creativity
The Innovation Festivals are part of the PRO INNO Europe initiative 'Innovation Weeks', which seek new and better innovation policies for countries and regions across Europe. Society driven and socially responsible innovation is one of the main focusses. The aim is to make citizens aware of the ways in which innovation and creativity can solve societal problems, enrich our lives and create a better society in general. One way to do so is by demonstrating and highlighting (regional) innovative solutions to past and current problems, by showcasing regional innovation success stories.

The Inovation Festival events are targeted at a broad audience: citizens, experts, businesses, public bodies, ngo's, financial institutions, educational centres, universities, etc. Participants and visitors will be offered the opportunity to learn about, and actively contribute to innovation within their region. Further, co-operative partnerships will be stimulated, which are expected to lead to facilitate and enhance innovation and strengthen regional innovation systems.