Living Labs #2: goed testen in de stad versnelt uitrol innovaties

Flevo Campus, Food Innovators and UPALMERE! are organizing this No Failure, No Glory evening.
Entrepreneurship is having courage, seizing opportunities, and above all, sticking your neck out. Mostly with success and at the same time, running the risk of making wrong decisions due to all the challenges.
Often the focus is on the successes, and we like to share those, but there is much to be learned from mistakes others have already made. That's why Flevo Campus and UPALMERE! are organizing this No Failure, No Glory evening. Let yourself be nourished and inspired by candid entrepreneurial stories.

Program:
Networking with Drinks and Bites: From 17:00 to 17:30, you can network in a relaxed atmosphere and enjoy delicious snacks and drinks.

From 17:30-18:00 we start the No Failure, No Glory stories: Led by Janno Lanjouw, journalist at Flevo Campus, various entrepreneurs will share their most instructive moments of failure in sessions of 15 minutes each. Expect vulnerable, yet humorous stories about companies that struggled in the start-up phase, reacted too late to market changes, or were ahead of their time. What went wrong? And what did they learn from it and how did it make them more successful?
Q&A: After each story, you have the opportunity to ask your questions. Dive deeper into the experiences of these entrepreneurs and learn from their insights.

Wrap Up and Drinks: At 19:00, we will conclude the evening with drinks, giving you the opportunity to continue conversations, exchange ideas, and make new connections.

Sign up via link and join this event!

Want to test your innovation during an open event such as Amsterdam Pride or the Amsterdam marathon? And looking for the opportunity to cooperate with the city in the long run?

The In Residence Open Events programme might be something for you. We have 8 broad defined challenges, ranging from circular economy to safety, from mobility to extreme whether. Basically we're looking for all innovations that can have an positive impact on the city and the event of the future!

During the programme you get:

• The opportunity to pilot your solution at an open event in Amsterdam, such as Amsterdam Pride or the Amsterdam Marathon
• 15K test budget to execute this pilot
• Guidance by an experienced mentor
• Access to the large municipality network
• The opportunity for long term cooperation in case of a succesfull pilot
• Large exposure and feedback opportunities

Interested to see our programme, the challenges and opportunity this brings for you?
See our website, www.innovatiepartners.nl, or see most recent LinkedIn post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/gemeente-amsterdam-innovatie_inresidence-amsterdam-innovatie-activity-7163881081757253632-6soh?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

For questions or thoughts, you can reach out to Mark Stoevelaar, project manager of the In Residence programme.
- mark.stoevelaar@amsterdam.nl
- +31621193028

Participating in a COP28 side event organized by the European Commission, the Amsterdam Region delved into Local Green Deals as instrument for achieving the green transition. The primary goal for the session was to uncover actionable strategies and prerequisites essential for fostering public-private collaboration to realize the sustainability transition. Marja Ruigrok, vice-mayor for the municipality of Haarlemmermeer, represented the Amsterdam Region alongside political and business leaders from Braga (Portugal), Aalborg (Denmark) and Skelleftea (Sweden).
 
Commencing the session, Valentina Superti, DG for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs at the European Commission, highlighted Europe's ambition to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. This necessitates a transformative shift towards sustainability, digitalization, and resilience, which is why the Commission is introducing critical legislation like the Net-Zero Industry Act and the Critical Raw Materials Act.
 
Ruigrok shared insights from the Amsterdam Metropolitan Region’s efforts in establishing Local Green Deals, emphasizing her role as political ambassador and champion for the Green Deal Bikes initiative. She stressed the importance of cycling, explaining that despite its reputation as a cycling paradise, approximately 20% of young people in the Amsterdam Region can not ride a bike: “If you don’t learn to ride a bike at a young age, you are also much less likely to use a bike for commuting later in life. That’s why in this Green Deal, we stimulate young people to learn to ride bikes, and encourage employers to support commuting by bike. This is crucial because employees who bike take on average 2.5 fewer sick days compared to those who don’t bike.”
 
Reflecting on success factors, Ruigrok emphasized the need for political commitment, and clear project ownership: "From a political point of view, you need long term commitment, and you have to create ownership. Someone has to take ownership and say ‘this is my project.’ This might be a governmental agency, a company, a knowledge institution, or civil society organisation - but someone has to take the lead. Otherwise, you will continue to talk, and nothing will happen."
 
Throughout the session, participants provided practical insights and recommendations for fostering successful public-private collaborations in general, and Local Green Deals in specific:

• Lasse Frimand Jensen, mayor of the City of Aalborg, emphasized the necessity of accountability mechanisms: “Mutual commitment is necessary and there must be mechanisms in place to keep each other accountable.”
• Ricardo Rio, mayor of City of Braga and Member of the European Committee of the Regions, highlighted the role of local authorities in mobilizing capacity and engaging stakeholders: “Local authorities need to have the spirit to engage stakeholders and shape partnerships. We  also need governance models that tranced political cycles, and that allow people to participate and hold us accountable.”
• Jens Broberg, representing the business sector, emphasized the urgent need for appropriate incentives: “Governments must use policy frameworks to incentivize and regulate businesses and industry towards a green economy.”
• Evelina Fahlesson, vice-mayor of Skelleftea Municipality emphasized the need for open and honest dialogue: “As a municipality, you have to be open about your challenges and willing to start a dialogue with your citizens and companies. Use procurement and new financing models as tools to implement a shared vision.”
• David Nordberg, from Skanska Sweden, encouraged business leaders to align their business models with sustainability ambitions: "Be brave: try new ways of doing business and work in collaborations. In the long term, there is no conflict between sustainability and the economy."

The session highlighted the pivotal role of collaborative multi-stakeholder partnerships in achieving the green transition, emphasizing sustained political commitment, robust governance structures transcending political timelines, and policy frameworks incentivising sustainable businesses.

In the context of COP28, the true challenge lies in replicating these successful approaches on a wider scale, extending beyond the relatively affluent European context to a global landscape with more limited resources. In many regions, the urgent and acute impacts of climate change are already pervasive, amplifying the need for swift, comprehensive action. This necessitates a global and concerted effort of nations and industries, to surmount the hurdles posed by resource scarcity and varying levels of socio-economic development. This calls for collaboration not only within regions but across continents, fostering knowledge-sharing, technology transfer, and collective efforts in tackling climate challenges. The urgency of the climate crisis demands a united global front, where the lessons learned and successes achieved in Local Green Deals can serve as guiding principles towards a more sustainable and resilient future for all.