Today is the formal conclusion of Responsible Innovation COMPASS project.
COMPASS started in 2016, funded under the Horizon 2020 programme.

COMPASS has been motivating for all those people that work on Responsible Innovation, including all of us here at MARIE.

With the COMPASS’s words: “Responsible Innovation COMPASS is an EU-funded project that supports Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) from emerging technology industries to manage their research, development and innovation activities in a responsible and inclusive manner”.
And they have done it, both under a theoretical and a more practical approach!

From the project web site, we can see the main results and achievements and, have access to:

•    Inspiring case studies
The Responsible Innovation COMPASS features real industry cases on how implementing responsible innovation can kick-start innovation and contribute to the competitiveness of SMEs in key innovation fields.
On the web site, the 5 winners from the case-study competition that was launched in September 2016.


•    Insights by the COMPASS Advisory Board
COMPASS has brought together exceptional experts, who have been working on the forefront of Responsible Innovation issues in the areas of healthcare, ICT, and nanotechnology, as well as on ethics, gender, and competitiveness issues as members of the Advisory Board. These Advisory Board members are offering exclusive insights into some of the most pressing Responsible Innovation issues to COMPASS.

•   Sector roadmaps
The roadmaps for responsible innovation in nanotechnology, cyber security and biomedicine were co-developed with 40 companies and civil society organisations.  Companies then had the opportunity to pilot roadmap actions and report on usability of the roadmaps themselves.

•    Responsible Innovation Self-check tool
The COMPASS Responsible Innovation self-check tool is a learning and self-diagnostic tool for responsible innovation in business. The tool will help companies assess where their company stands, how they compare to peers, and what they can do to make their innovation practices more responsible.

•    Training materials
The COMPASS training materials and tools are tailored to the needs of SMEs and have been designed to help companies manage their research, development and innovation activities in a responsible and inclusive manner. They also aim to help innovation support organisations, researchers, and policy makers to gain further insights on responsible innovation.

•    Project directory
COMPASS has compiled an overview of RRI projects and initiatives carried out in Europe over the course of the past ten years. The COMPASS project directory below contains 130 publicly funded RRI projects in Europe.

MARIE is delighted to share the achievements of COMPASS project, to spread the knowledge and the practical tools across our partnership and beyond, touching the several enterprises, public administrations, institutions and universities that are involved in our work.

Just one month ago, the COMPASS final conference saw the participation of the MARIE lead partner and our partner from Southern Region Ireland; a great opportunity to conclude the project, with a such large participation.

Thank you Responsible Innovation COMPASS project. As Danny said to Sandy in the classic film Grease, this is not the end, it is only the beginning!


Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash