As part of the EU project ECoC-SME a local action plan has been developed in Rijeka to support the creative industries, and the implementation of the designed activities starts in the autumn.
The European ECoC-SME project brings together five former (Leeuwarden, Matera), current (Rijeka) and future (Kaunas, Timișoara) capitals of culture around a joint mission – how to harness the potential of the ECOC for the development of creative and cultural industries (CCIs) and the overall prosperity of the local economy. There is no doubt that the ECOC title places the city holding the European cultural map prominently, and that the activities of the event mobilise all sectors of society and have positive effects on the local community.
Local action plans create the conditions for the survival of local creative industries
However, in the circumstances of the pandemic, these positions change significantly, which Rijeka felt on its own example. ECOC 2020 started just before the ‘new normal’ and due to epidemiological measures and reduced finances, the programme could not be implemented in the planned volume. Under these conditions, the expected potential of the ECOC was lacking, and with it the positive spill-over effects on the local economy.
Almost all areas of the economy have experienced the negative consequences of the corona crisis, most notably the cultural and creative industries (CCIs) and related activities. Partners in the ECoC-SME project in the new situation focus precisely on the support of the CI, and in this direction develop their local action plans, whose task is to launch initiatives and create conditions for the survival and development of the local CI and startup scene.
The development of a local action plan to support the creative industries in Rijeka was preceded by participatory meetings of stakeholders called Local Learning Labs, which aimed to define the problems and obstacles faced by entrepreneurs in the creative industries and related activities, to identify shortcomings and opportunities for their elimination, and to rank priorities in their resolution. The results of these discussions, which took place in a total of seven during the duration of the project, had a direct impact on the design of the actions of the local action plan. In addition, other project partners have contributed to the creation of the actions, with the already acquired experience of the ECoC, as well as through the exchange of good practices in the field of CCI and entrepreneurship.
The action plan relies on the advantages of the already built entrepreneurial infrastructure of the City of Rijeka
After analyzing all the collected data, but also taking into account local specificities, an action plan was developed to support the creative industries, which relies on the advantages of the already built entrepreneurial infrastructure of the City of Rijeka.
The first action, Creative Doctors, is an online exchange and interaction between entrepreneurs or future entrepreneurs who need advice, idea or proposal on the one hand, and more experienced entrepreneurs who, from their own experience and acquired knowledge, can provide them with answers. Communication between the ‘doctor’ and the ‘patients’ will take place, in the first test period, on the Facebook page of the Startup Incubator Rijeka, which has over 2,500 followers. Creative doctors aim not only to solve the problem of beginner entrepreneurs in a practical way, but also to connect the Rijeka startup community more effectively. Also, an offline variant of Creative Doctors is planned, which, if the epidemiological situation allows, will take place in the RiHub area, where the Startup incubator Rijeka is located.
Developing a participatory governance model for RiHub
The second activity is the introduction of the Creative Module into the regular (pre)incubation program of the Startup Incubator Rijeka, which will be dedicated to KKI. It was a series of workshops aimed at strengthening the initiatives and protagonists of KKI, and facilitating their access to knowledge, opportunities and innovation within the entrepreneurial infrastructure of the City of Rijeka. The creative module is a direct follow-up to the EU co-funded project Energana – an incubator for creative technologies and IT industry, which is currently being implemented.
In light of the recent relocation of the Startup Incubator to RiHub Center, the third activity relates to the development of a participatory RiHub management model. It is a space that is a direct legacy of the ECoC project and whose original function of supporting cultural and civil initiatives, CCI and activism is today expanded by supporting small and medium-sized entrepreneurship. The governance model will ensure that RiHub's spatial capacities are harnessed in the development and benefit of Rijeka's start-ups, especially from KKI, and stakeholders of the cultural scene and civil society.
The results of the implementation will be presented with the end of the ECoC-SME EU project in July 2022. Representatives of the City of Rijeka – Department of Entrepreneurship and Department of Culture, Startup Incubator Rijeka, Smart RI – Competence Centre for Smart Cities and Rijeka Development Agency Porin participate in the implementation of the activities.
Retrieved:
https://www.rijeka.hr/osmisljen-rijecki-akcijski-plan-za-podrsku-kreativnim-industrijama/
