Evaluation of SEE Capitalisation Strategy European Territorial Co-operation 2007 2013
Introduction In the period 2007-2013 most transnational and interregional cooperation programmes explored the potential of project capitalisation. The common understanding is that capitalisation increases the visibility of both projects and programmes, bringing forward the legacy of the current programming period. It is about comparing performance, getting inspired from previous work, supporting re-use of knowledge and know-how transfer. SEE programme created a capitalisation strategy tailored to its available resources (human & knowledge & financial capital). Different approaches and experiences were analysed to find the most suitable ones. Projects feedback was also taken into consideration. Two thematic events piloted the idea of thematic clustering of projects. In October 2012 in Timisoara (RO) SEE projects working in the field of innovation (strengthening RTDI, enhancing SME competitiveness) gathered to exchange on topicrelated issues. Another seminar, which took place in March 2013 in Budapest (HU), facilitated the exchange of projects working on environmental topics (climate change adaptation & mitigation, risk prevention & management, resource efficiency, environment protection). Based on the feedback from these events and the analysis of existing capitalisation experience, SEE programme conceptualized its own capitalisation strategy. SEE Capitalisation strategy was formally launched in June 2013 at the SEE Annual event held in Bucharest (RO). The event facilitated the thematic clustering of projects in 14 groups and planning of joint activities for the following one year and a half. SEE programme organised two more thematically-focused seminars in September 2013. The target group was SEE projects working on accessibility (multimodal connections, regional mobility, green transport, ICT connectivity) and sustainable development issues (demographics, cultural assets, and urban development). In September 2014 in Ljubljana on the occasion of SEE closing event the programme took stock of the capitalisation process inviting thematic pole participants to share their experiences and suggest improvements for future capitalisation initiatives. All materials related to the capitalisation process can be found here: http://www.southeast-europe.net/en/achievements/capitalisation_strategy/. SEE Capitalisation strategy The overall aim of SEE capitalisation was to initiate a well-documented synergybuilding exchange primarily among SEE projects in order to turn individual project outcomes to the advantage of a larger number of topic-related projects as well as to the programme itself, thus increasing SEE impact in line with the programme global objective. 2
Two specific objectives were defined to this aim: (1) By mid 2014 at least 3 SEE projects within each programme-defined capitalisation topic will have shared know-how on the topic and project results through concrete joint activities (e.g. peer review of outcomes, joint thematic events, relevant studies, newsletter cross-references, addressing together common stakeholders), and whenever possible, will have built upon other SEE or relevant EU funded projects achievements (e.g. re-using available knowledge to avoid duplication, incorporating existing know-how into new products, extending the usability of results). (2) By mid 2014 SEE JTS will have implemented a series of activities supporting and complementing project thematic capitalisation, in particular, introducing a regular news section on capitalisation in programme newsletter, attending at least 1 joint thematic event organised by projects per topic, organising 1 joint dissemination event for all capitalisation topics, as well as publishing relevant dissemination material (1 item per topic). The target group of SEE Capitalisation was defined as follows: - SEE projects of similar/complementary thematic scope; - Beneficiaries of SEE projects activities & outputs; - SEE programme bodies; - SEE stakeholders; - Programming bodies of future transnational cooperation in the region. 14 thematic poles were created: (1) Innovation Governance and Policy; (2) Competitive SME Support Services; (3) Knowledge Transfer to SMEs (later merged with pole 2); (4) Low Carbon Communities; (5) Climate Change Adaptation; (6) Nature Protection; (7) Multimodal Accessibility to Primary Networks; (8) Regional Mobility; (9) Green Transport Systems; (10) Access to Quality ICT; (11) Employment and Demographic Change; (12) Urban Development; (13) Cultural Resources; (14) Hazard Management and Risk Prevention (later disintegrated). It should be noted that participating in the thematic poles was voluntary and no additional funding was offered by the programme. The programme provided an indicative list of project activities that included but was not limited to: Newsletter cross-references; 3
Joint studies pertinent to the capitalisation objectives and the thematic scope; Peer review or benchmarking of project outputs; Joint thematic events co-organised by minimum two SEE projects; Joint dissemination events of minimum two SEE projects targeting common stakeholders; Staff exchanges or study visits, if this enables cross-fertilisation and/or take-up of results. Still the SEE Capitalisation was predominantly bottom-up. Each thematic pole drew up with its own working plan and list of desired outcomes, although formal approval by SEE JTS was required. SEE programme itself also committed to implementing a set of activities, which can be found in the next sections of this paper. The time frame for the capitalisation process was defined as approximately 1 year from annual event to annual event, i.e. mid June 2013 to second half of September 2014. SEE Capitalisation strategy in action The strategy was implemented on a programme and project level with proper interface between the two levels established by SEE JTS team. Activities at programme level: The SEE JTS developed the branding for the initiative. Based on the programme logo 14 thematic pole logos were created and used by both programme and projects for promotion of capitalisation activities. 4
SEE 2013 annual event inaugurated SEE capitalisation strategy with a specific session that allowed thematic networking within each of the 14 clusters. JTS team facilitated the exchanges among projects to identify common ground for future synergy-building and start planning a common roadmap of activities. 14 brainstorming workshops were held as part 3 of the event. Around 90 project implementers took part in these sessions. Each of the 14 thematic poles agreed upon a roadmap of joint capitalisation activities. 14 roadmaps were designed by the thematic clusters under the guidance of SEE JTS team. These are available on the SEE website subpage dedicated to the Capitalisation strategy. Lesson learnt from the first two thematic seminars (the ones from Timisoara and Budapest) were used to adjust thematic seminar concept of subsequent SEE capitalisation events. The updated seminar concept was applied in the 2013 annual event, as well as in the 2 thematic events held in autumn 2013. Approximately 54.3% of participants who replied to the evaluation survey of the latter considered the format and content as very satisfactory (second highest rate). Around 33.85% of respondents thought the events were excellent. 5
Participants in all 4 SEE thematic seminars organised both before and after the official launch of the capitalisation strategy gave projects the opportunity to input the preparation of 3 new transnational programmes (Danube, ADRION, and Balkan Mediterranean). The conclusions from these seminars were collated by SEE JTS team and delivered to programming bodies and external experts designing the programmes. Danube and ADRION both used the input (and referenced it!) in their cooperation programme texts. The SEE JTS team supported the communication of project capitalisation activities by creating a specific sub-page in SEE website. Each thematic pole also has a dedicated subsection where joint activities and deliverables are promoted. Programme newsletters put capitalisation in the spotlight, regularly updating programme stakeholders on capitalisation stories. As part of programme level, capitalisation SEE JTS team developed an outputs library accessible via SEE website. It exhibits project deliverables and is searchable with capitalisation-related key words, type of output, as well as per country. Here local, regional and national public authorities can find inspiration for addressing similar development challenges. Managing authorities of mainstream EU programmes can find good ideas for specific calls for projects. The library can help educational and research institutions adjust their services to concrete regional needs. Businesses will find useful support platforms. European Territorial Co-operation 2007 2013
As part of programme level capitalisation, SEE JTS team initiated an analysis of project interventions addressing major socio-economic challenges in SEE area. This is a live document that grows with the advancement of projects implementation. The analysis gave input to the ongoing programme evaluation, as well as to the reports to the European Commission (thus also informing the expost ETC 2007-2013 evaluation). It explains in what way SEE project activities and outcomes contribute to overcoming regional development challenges (weaknesses, gaps) identified at the beginning of the programme. This systematic approach leads to delineation of thematic groups of projects and shows the different aspects and, therefore, ways of dealing with the same challenge. When completed, the analysis could be a useful collection of policy tools and measures to serve local and regional authorities, as well as future project implementers in the area. Part of SEE 2014 annual event was dedicated to capitalisation results. 10 out of 14 thematic poles participated in a talk-show session and shared their capitalisation experience in terms of benefits and challenges. Finally, they gave recommendations for a successful capitalisation process in the future. 7
A video recording of the discussion is available here. For the purpose of SEE 2014 annual event the programme published a thematic leaflet summarising capitalisation results at a glance. Programme staff was committed to attend at least 1 thematic capitalisation event per topic. SEE JTS Project Managers and the Communication Manager participated in almost all joint events organised by the more active thematic poles. In some cases it was more than one event per topic. However, considering that two poles disintegrated soon after the official launch of the initiative, and that some other poles preferred to exchange through other means (e.g. online platforms, meeting at programme-organised events), it was not possible to keep the initial commitment. Thematic pole leaders were invited to report on the joint pole activities through their regular project progress reports. The majority of Project Managers (80%) agree that capitalisation gave a better overview of thematic achievements. 8
Activities at project level: As already pointed out above, thematic pole participants designed individual schedules depending on group interests. The resulting 14 roadmaps can be found on SEE website s Capitalisation section. It should be noted that the intensity of cooperation within each pole depended solely on the interest of the pole members. Therefore, some poles were more active, e.g. engaged in peer review, harmonised outputs across projects, while others remained passive apart from attending SEE programme capitalisation-related workshops or attending each other s events. In terms of joint capitalisation events the highest reported number came from the thematic pole of Multimodal Accessibility to Primary Networks 7. The eight project members of the pole organised bi- and tri-lateral meetings, which explains the high number of reported joint events. When it comes to joint activities other than events, however, the most active cluster was the one on Nature Protection (19). They established a platform for document exchange with the other six projects in the pole. Five study visits were also organised, joint pole presentations were delivered at external events. This pole was also very active in establishing cross-sectoral links with other poles, i.e. Greener Transport Systems, Regional Mobility and Cultural Resources. Most of the projects participating in the SEE Capitalisation took the opportunity of the programme-organised thematic events to meet and liaise instead of organising extra meetings on their own, especially since no additional funding was offered. The poles that remained rather latent in content exchange were Knowledge Transfer to SMEs and Competitive SME support services (which in the end merged to join Innovation Governance and Policy), Urban Development, and Hazard Management and Risk Prevention. Evaluating SEE Capitalisation strategy SEE Capitalisation strategy envisaged an evaluation based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria. Based on these an online survey was prepared and addressed to projects that joined the Capitalisation initiative in 2013, i.e. 94 projects (77% of all projects funded through SEE). The response rate was 37%. A separate survey was sent to 6 members of SEE JTS staff that engaged in the capitalisation process. The response rate was 100%. 9
The survey feedback was collected and analysed during the months of November and December in 2014. Data collected in the preparation of the capitalisation session of SEE 2014 annual event as well as through projects progress reports complemented this feedback. The fulfillment of evaluation criteria can be thus summarised: Qualitative targets in June 2013 Progress by December 2014 1. Thematically-close SEE projects will Here we can consider several factors: have better understanding and use of what has been achieved in their field of First, on average, each project activity both in the framework of SEE established synergies with 3 other programme and beyond SEE projects. In the best case, a project reported links to 11 other EU projects. Second, 47% of surveyed projects benefitted from a peer review process as part of their SEE capitalisation experience. Third, 51% of survey respondents consider they have benefitted from connecting to similar projects thanks to SEE Capitalisation. Projects appreciated the exchange of ideas, diverse views and approaches. In many cases synergy-building inspired plans for joint future action. 2. SEE projects working on similar topics will produce complementary outputs and results 3. Projects involved in SEE capitalisation will be more efficient in getting messages through to common stakeholders and potential output users 4. SEE programme will improve the monitoring of projects progress by Lastly, 54% of interviewed projects reported success in making use of others achievements incorporating them in their own outputs. Most of the surveyed projects (57%) said SEE Capitalisation helped them avoid duplications and ensured complementarities with other projects outputs. Almost 43% of surveyed SEE projects think SEE Capitalisation helped them obtain a greater stakeholder outreach. This indicator is meant to be understood as providing better overview of 10
paying specific attention to qualitative information and thematic achievements thematic achievements. 4 out of 5 SEE JTS Project Managers confirmed that this was the case. 5. SEE programme will be able to better communicate to programme stakeholders on programme thematic achievements 6. Capitalisation will contribute to the design and/or implementation of future transnational cooperation in the area One (1) presentation at INFORM meeting (2013) addressing ETC communication managers and EC; One (1) presentation at Regional Cooperation Council meeting in Sarajevo (2013) addressing regional and national decision-makers; One (1) presentation at Future of Cities forum in Ljubljana (2013) addressing regional and national decision-makers; Input was collected from SEE projects during the 4 thematic events. The resulting recommendation paper has been reflected in the texts of two new cooperation programmes, i.e. Danube and ADRION. Quantitative targets in June 2013 Progress by December 2014 1. Two (2) programme-organised thematic seminars enabling structured thematic exchange between projects 2. Two (2) other programme-organised events focusing on capitalisation 3. At least one (1) joint thematic event organised by minimum 2 SEE projects for each capitalisation topic (min. 14 joint events) 4. At least one (1) other capitalisation activity carried out jointly by each thematic pole (min. 14 joint activities) One (1) event dedicated to sustainable development projects: Inclusive SEE, 17 September 2013, Split; One (1) event dedicated to transport-related projects: Accessible SEE, 18 September 2013, Split; One (1) kick-off event (i.e. SEE 2013 annual event of 19 June 2013, Bucharest); One (1) dissemination event (i.e. SEE 2014 annual event of 24-25 September 2014, Ljubljana) to promote capitalisation outcomes; 9 out of 14 thematic poles had at least one joint thematic event, i.e. 64% achieved; Twenty (20) joint events have been reported in total; 9 out of 14 thematic poles carried out jointly another capitalisation activity (different than an event or an event with projects outside their thematic 11
5. Improved outputs of at least ten (10) projects participating in the capitalisation initiative (i.e. revised outputs based on capitalisation experience /peer review/, incorporating elements from other projects into own project products) 6. One (1) recommendation paper per capitalisation topic suggesting also a tentative list of further actions to be taken in order to better meet common challenges within each theme 7. At least two (2) articles on capitalisation published with programme newsletter and at least 2,000 programme stakeholders reached 8. One (1) thematic publication developed by the programme on capitalisation outcomes cluster), i.e. 64% achieved; In total, around forty (40) such joint activities were implemented; Thirteen (13) of the surveyed projects think SEE Capitalisation enabled them to peer review outputs and results with other SEE (and not only) projects. As many as nineteen (19) projects said SEE Capitalisation made it possible for them to incorporate other projects outcomes into their own project. One (1) paper collating conclusions from the 4 thematic seminars serving as input for designing new transnational programmes in SEE area, i.e. Danube, ADRION, and Balkan Mediterranean; SEE programme promoted capitalisation in seven (7) newsletter articles; These newsletters reached eight thousand (8,000) recipients; One (1) thematic leaflet summarising SEE capitalisation main achievements was created on the occasion of SEE 2014 annual event; The survey allowed for the collection of additional information on the capitalisation process through open-end questions. For instance, survey participants were asked to rate the effectiveness of SEE Capitalisation in terms of synergy-building. Scores from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest) were possible. About 43% of respondents found the effectiveness medium (score of 3). A score of 4 and 5 was given by an equal number of respondents 20% for each rate. Respondents had the opportunity to suggest improvements in a future capitalisation initiative. Their replies can be thus summarised: Initiating capitalisation earlier, e.g. at the start of programme and projects; Allocating funds to capitalisation activities is advisable either as obligatory horizontal activity for all projects or as a work package; 12
Ensuring financial support for closed projects to participate in capitalisation activities, e.g. travel & accommodation. In addition, JTS (programme) should make sure closed projects take part in the initiative in order not to lose their input; JTS (programme) providing stronger support in terms of structuring and guiding the capitalisation process, organising regular thematic events, etc. JTS (programme) being more flexible in accepting adjustments in projects work plans, if new capitalisation opportunities arise. Support and facilitation of capitalisation across programmes. Nevertheless, 51% of survey respondents considered networking to have been the most important part of SEE Capitalisation. And although different intensity of cooperation was observed across thematic poles, there are projects that report on concrete effects from the synergy-building process. In particular, national intelligent transport system architectures developed by SEE-ITS project have been taken up by RAIL4SEE partners (aiming at improved transnational rail connectivity) in their specifications for ICT for passenger mobility. The exchanged was enabled through cross-pole cooperation of Regional Mobility and Multimodal Accessibility to Primary Networks. Thessaloniki benefitted from complementing the outputs of two SEE projects in the Regional Mobility pole, i.e. ATTAC and RAIL4SEE. The first one enabled the design of a sustainable urban mobility plan and the other implemented the stakeholder governance actions to facilitate the plan s realization. CO-WANDA (waste management in inland transport) developed an online waste collection booking services for ship operators on the Danube. This application was adapted by DaHar (Danube harbor development) to meet the needs of sea ship operators in the Black Sea and was tested in the ports of Tulcea and Galaţi in Romania. This happened thanks to cross-fertilisation between the Greener Transport Systems and Multimodal Accessibility to Primary Networks poles. Exchanges within the thematic pole of Greener Transport Systems resulted in new tutorials in the IneS Danube learning platform developed by HINT (harmonized inland navigation training) related to waste management in inland transportation (influence from CO-WANDA). Thanks to synergies built with ZEROWASTE (MED project) RE-SEEties (resource efficient urban communities) took up a waste management tool for local authorities and 13
incorporated it in its own toolkit for local waste and energy management practices. Their cooperation was facilitated through the Low Carbon Communities thematic pole. Within the pole of Employment and Demographic Change SEEMIG (managing migration in transnational context) and MMWD (migration-related strategic policy planning) were the most active contributors. While SEEMIG put emphasis on data collection and harmonisation, MMWD offered policy tools for managing migration in the future. The outputs of both projects turned out to be complementary. In particular, migration data collected by SEEMIG was used in benchmarking the data feeding MMWD s policy planning. SEEMIG took on board recommendations on what sets of data are needed for policy making. ORIENTGATE (integrating climate change into policy and territorial planning) exchanged in-depth with SEERISK colleagues (joint disaster management in Danube macro region). As a result disaster risk reduction was added to the project s climate change adaptation decision-making support tools. Conclusion The evaluation of SEE Capitalisation strategy shows that capitalisation objectives were achieved to a great extent. On average 64% of projects involved in SEE Capitalisation shared know-how and results through concrete joint activities with at least 3 other projects. Reportedly 54% of projects managed to re-use available knowledge to avoid duplication, incorporate existing know-how into new products, or extend the usability of results. SEE programme supported this process with regular communication on the synergy-building process and involvement in the joint thematic events organised by thematic poles. Most importantly JTS staff acted as interface between projects and new transnational cooperation programmes in the area and relayed projects thematic input to the future funding instruments. SEE experience proves that capitalisation can be effected with little extra funding and leverage, which is worthwhile. For a higher leverage, though, capitalisation has to become part of both programme and projects paradigm. 14