We are very happy and excited to share that 2 Pilots have been approved by the Interreg Europe Monitoring Committee.
Excellent news for the partnership of the WaVE project and especially for the Municipality of Ravenna and Ister-Granum EGTC.
In this article we will take a brief look at what pilots are and why they are relevant for giving an extra cooperation boost to the project.
In the coming weeks we will be interviewing Pilot owners from Ister-Granum and Ravenna to ask them directly what their Pilot action is about.
What are Pilot Actions?
Pilot actions are implementation-related activities dedicated to testing a new approach. This usually refers to the transfer of a good practice found in another region.
To be eligible for support from the programme, Pilot Actions need to fulfil the following three conditions, which apply to any activities proposed within Interreg Europe: relevance, interregionality and additionality.
1. Relevance and durability
Pilot Actions should clearly contribute to the policy instrument tackled in the region and consequently should be part of the action plan of that region.
2. Interregionality
Pilot Actions need to be clearly related to the interregional learning process
3. Additionality
The region proposing a Pilot Action should explain why this action cannot be financed by the relevant local, regional or national funds
Why are Pilot Actions important?
Within the WaVE Project we are exchanging knowledge and good practices among regions and territories and organizing meetings with regional stakeholders.
Interregional exchange and discussion ensured that all partners acquired skills and knowledge from each other's good practices.
However, it is not always possible for a region to immediately and fully implement a good idea found in another region. Sometimes the idea first needs testing in the territory to check if it achieves the expected results there. Only then can the idea be generalised.
For such testing, Interreg Europe offers to its projects the possibility to implement pilot actions.
Pilot Actions in numbers
As of April 2020, the monitoring committee approved a total of 69 pilot actions. A total of 103 partners from 64 regions all over Europe are implementing the actions:
19 are helping to foster innovation in Europe,
8 will lead to better supporting schemes for SMEs,
24 accompany the transition to a low-carbon economy, and
18 contribute to the preservation of natural and cultural heritage and to a better management of resources.
The overall support for Pilot Actions is EUR 3.1 million ERDF. Interreg Europe expects that their impact will be great at the regional level, because they act as a leverage for further projects and funding.
What will change in the WaVE project?
To allow the 2 Piloting Partners to carry out their testing activities, the project will be extended by 1 year. The project will therefore end in July 2023.
WaVE partners will support and learn from the implementation of the Pilot Actions during interregional exchange meetings.
>> Curious to know more about the Pilots?
Read the interview with:
- Péter Nagy, Director of the Ister-Granum EGTC
- Maria Grazia Marini, Director of the Tourism Service of the Municipality of Ravenna
