09:00 – 09:20

Welcome Words & Opening

Thomas Eiskirch, Lord Mayor of the City of Bochum &
Andree Haack, Department head for Economic Affairs, City of Duisburg

09:20 – 09:30

Setting the Scene: Welcome & Introduction by the Organisers

Rouven Beeck, Bochum Economic Development

09:30 – 09:55

Clusters and Ecosystems – Old and New Strategies for Countries, Regions and Cities
Dr. Christian Ketels, Harvard Business School

09:55 – 10:20

European Green Deal and Regional Competitiveness
Dr. Ulla Engelmann, Acting Director Networks & Governance, European Commission

10:20 – 10:45

Coffee Break

10:45 – 11:10

Is Germany’s Technology Profile Future-proof?
Prof. Dr. Tom Broekel, UiS Business School Stavanger

11:10 – 11:35

Long-term Regional Strategy for Inclusive Competitiveness: The Basque Country Case
Dr. James R. Wilson, Orkestra Basque Institute for Competitiveness

11:35 – 12.00

20 Years of Cluster Policies in Germany: Review and the Way Forward in Duisburg
Dr. Rasmus C. Beck, Duisburg Business & Innovation (DBI)

12:00 – 12:30

Panel of Keynote Speakers: Key Policy Issues

12:30 – 13:30

Lunch break

13:30 – 14:00

Keynote: Innovation Policy in North Rhine-Westphalia
Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart, Minister of Economic Affairs, Innovation, Digitalization and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia

14:00 – 16:00

Session 1 “Regional Development and Smart Specialisation” (hybrid session)
Chairs: Dr. Christian Ketels (Harvard Business School & TCI) & Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Noll (Stiftung Zollverein)

1.1 Diversity-driven Cross-border Cluster Development – Opportunities for Firms and Workers in the Basel Region
Prof. Dr. Tina Haisch (University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland) & Dr. Mads Bruun Ingstrup, University of Southern Denmark

1.2 Is less agglomeration a (crucial) disadvantage? The Case of Rural Germany
Dr. Christian Hundt & Dr. Anne Margarian (Thünen Institute of Rural Studies)

1.3 Challenges & Opportunities of Monitoring Smart Specialisation Strategies
Ghinwa Moujaes (Universitat Politècnica de València)

1.4 Moving Smart Specialisation to the Next Level: Learnings from the Ruhr Metropolis
Dmitri Domanski (Business Metropole Ruhr)

Session 2 “Regional Innovation in Transition: The New Role of Universities" (offline session)
Chairs: Prof. Dr. Rolf G. Heinze (Ruhr University Bochum) & Prof. Dr. Manfred Wannöffel (Ruhr University Bochum)

2.1 The Black Forest Diamond – Regional Impact of a Cross-Clustering Program
Prof. Dr. Hansjörg Drewello, Dr. Nina Kulawik (Kehl University of Public Administration) & Dr. Carsten Hutt (SciConomy)

2.2 Centre for the Engineering of Smart-Service Systems: Driving Regional Innovation by Interdisciplinary Research Cooperation
Dr. Michael Herzog (Ruhr University Bochum)

2.3 Entrepreneurship, the Digital Health Economy and the Role of Universities: Recent Findings from North Rhine-Westphalia
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Merkel (Ruhr University Bochum)

2.4 Learning Factories at Universities: Cooperative Research and Qualification Strategies
Prof. Dr. Manfred Wannöffel (Ruhr University Bochum)

Session 3 “Clusters & Cluster Policies Revisited I” (online session)
Chairs: Prof. Dr. Dirk Fornahl (CRIE) & Prof. Dr. Daniel Buhr (University of Tübingen)

3.1 A Stakeholder View on the Management of Cluster Relationships
Dr. Murat Akpinar (JAMK University of Applied Sciences, Jyväskylä)

3.2 Turning Green: Mapping the Green Transition in Italian Clusters
Dr. Féderica Belfanti, Prof. Dr. Fernando Alberti & Massimo Riva (Libera Università Carlo Cattaneo, Castellanza)

3.3 How Moscow Clusters Help Overcome the COVID-19 Pandemic
Dr. Evgeniy Kutsenko & Saule Ismagulova (National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow)

3.4 Do New Paths for Clusters Just Need the Right Incentive? Effects of R&D Funding on Changing Knowledge Heterogeneity in Clusters
Robin Telge (University of Bremen) & Dr. Nils Grashof (Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena)

3.5 Input from Practice by
Dr. Jonas Keil (Ministry for Economic Affairs, Innovation, Digitalization and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia)

Session 4 “Clusters & Cluster Policies Revisited II” (offline session)
Chairs: Dr. Rasmus C. Beck (DBI) & Prof. Dr. Matthias Kiese (Ruhr-University Bochum)

4.1 Location and Skilled Labor Supply in German Clusters
Prof. Dr. Pablo Collazzo, Danube University Krems

4.2 Cluster organisations as platforms for B2R/R2B collaboration in The Czech Republic and Poland
Dr. Dominika Kuberska (University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn), Dr. Marta Mackiewicz (SGH Warsaw School of Economics), Dr. Lukas Danko & Prof. Dr. Drahomira Pavelkova (Tomas Bata University in Zlin)

4.3 Is Ambidexterity Crucial for Cluster Resilience? Conceptional Consideration and Empirical Evidence
Dr. Michael Rothgang & Dr. Bernhard Lageman, RWI Leibniz Institute for Economic Research

Session 5 “Mission-oriented Innovation Policies and Strategies for Sustainability and Resilience” (hybrid session)
Chairs: Dr. Stefan Gärtner & Dr. Judith Terstriep (IAT)

5.1 Regional Transformation Depends on Individual Trends and Commitment
Bernhard Grieb (Institut für Innovation und Technik, Berlin)

5.2 MICE Destinations and Corona – Alignment Options for MICE Infrastructure to Solve Current Issues and to Become a More Resilient City
Prof. Dr. Bernd Schabbing (ISM International School of Management)

5.3 Cluster Collaboration at the Thresholds of Geographic Proximities
Assia Viachka (Stockholm School of Economics)

5.4 Regional Cooperation and Projects to Face Transition: A Trade Union Perspective
Dr. Jörg Weingarten (German Trade Union Confederation DGB North Rhine-Westphalia)

Session 6 “Resilience and Change Management for Cities, Regions and Firms” (online session)
Chairs: Prof. Dr. Kai Rommel (International School of Management)

6.1 The Concept of Resilience for Organisational Units in Tourism: Application for Advanced Sustainable Management
Prof. Dr. Martin Fontanari (ISM International School of Management), Dr. Anastasia Traskevich (Belarus State Economic University)

6.2 Beyond Digitalisation: The Case Study of Achieving Business Transformation and Resilience in the Covid-19 Crisis
Tony Lin (Industrial Technology Research Institute, Taiwan)

6.3 Aspects of Regional Knowledge Management
Dr. Stefan Röllinghoff (Dortmund Economic Development) & Dr. Maik H. Wagner (Institute for the Knowledge Economy)

6.4 Foresight as an Element of Urban Resilience Management
Prof. Dr. Michael Roos (Ruhr University Bochum)

16:00 – 16:30

Coffee Talk on Innovation Cluster Initiatives as a Policy Tool during the Pandemic with
Eric Mischke (Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy) & Prof. Dr. Matthias Kiese (Ruhr-University Bochum)

16:30 – 17:00

Panel of session chairs, wrap-up and outlook

17:00 – 18:00

Discussion: Cluster Organizations in Mission-oriented Policies – Obsolete or Critical for Success?
Prof. Dr. Jakob Edler, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation  
Research ISI
Dr. Christian Ketels, Harvard Business School & TCI Network
Engelbert Beyer, Federal Ministry of Education and Research

18:00 – 21:00

Offline conference dinner at G DATA

9:00

Breakfast at G DATA

10:00 – 13:00

Offline Field Visits in Bochum und Duisburg by bus
Bochum: cybersecurity and healthcare
Duisburg: hydrogen technology and logistics

Departure from G Data-Campus

13:00

EMOC lunch at RUB Campus (members only)

14:00 – 17:00

EMOC network meeting at RUB (members only)

RUB Campus Map

17:00

End of Conference