The 3rd policy learning workshop of the RRI-LEADERS project took place on 29-30 June 2023 in Sofia, gathering over 30 stakeholders from the four partner countries, Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, and Switzerland. Gencho Kerezov, deputy mayor and head of InnovativeSofia, welcomed the participants and spoke eloquently about the implementation of the city’s digital transformation strategy and the ways in which digital technologies are changing the policymaking process. At the heart of the workshop discussions were questions related to responsible territorial policymaking. Urban development policies in the past several years have focused on new urban transitions towards sustainability in areas like digital transformation, entrepreneurship, new skills, green innovation. They all require translation of research and innovation into policy priorities, as well as developing workable principles for cooperation and support from key local stakeholders. To implement societal transition pathways with positive impact on citizens makes co-creation approaches inevitable, as a way to meet the enhanced need for consensus building in the context of such transitions. In this context, the project RRI-LEADERS was a welcome opportunity for city officials from the partner countries to gain access to new tools for policy experimentation, rethinking and reconfiguration of the policymaking process.
RRI Leaders is funded by Horizon2020.
