New Membership: GCCIR joins IraSME and attends BMWi’s Innovation Day in Berlin

In light of the new Alberta-Europe Technology Collaboration Fund established by the Alberta Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (EDT) and the German-Canadian Centre for Innovation and Research (GCCIR), the GCCIR has joined the IraSME network.
IraSME is a network of ministries and funding agencies, which offer national and regional funding programs for cooperative research projects between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The network supports SMEs in their transnational innovation activities, and helps them access technological expertise, extend their own networks and bridge the gap between research and innovation.

Twice a year, IraSME issues calls for proposals for transnational cooperative research projects between SMEs and research and technology organizations (RTOs), with the objective of developing innovative products, processes and/or services in technological fields. The calls follow a bottom-up approach, meaning research topics are not pre-defined and are open to all technology sectors. Funding for collaboration projects is made available through national and regional funding programs administered by the respective ministry or funding agency participating in the IraSME network.

The IraSME membership provides the GCCIR with a unique tool to administer the Alberta-Europe Technology Collaboration Fund in Alberta, and to advise on respective funding agencies partnering companies could potentially apply to. The network will also benefit GCCIR in future matchmaking missions to Europe; missions the GCCIR offers to Albertan SMEs looking to find international collaboration partners.

Read the latest IraSME Newsletter containing the announcement of GCCIR’s membership here.

The official announcement of GCCIR’s membership in the IraSME network took place at Innovation Day, on June 7, 2018, in Berlin. It was an honor for GCCIR Manager Katelyn Petersen and Senior Project Coordinator Jonas Kuhn to travel to Germany and attend Innovation Day for this special occasion.

Also celebrating ZIM’s 10 years anniversary, this year’s Innovation Day had exceptional significance. With more than 300 companies and research institutes presenting a variety of innovations developed with the support of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), and more than 2000 visitors and attendees, it was a particularly exciting and productive showcase of technology development and international coopertation.

Links:

https://irasme-cornet-berlin-2018.b2match.io/page-1561

https://www.zim.de/ZIM/Navigation/DE/Infothek/Veranstaltungen/veranstaltungen.html