• This is Strategic Cluster Week, an initiative organized by ACCIÓ through the Catalonia Clusters program

17 Catalan clusters have traveled to Boston this week with the aim of exploring strategic opportunities within their sectors, fostering international networking and learning about how clusters work in advanced and innovative ecosystems. This trip is part of Strategic Cluster Week, an initiative organized by ACCIÓ through the Catalonia Clusters program in collaboration with the Foreign Trade and Investment Office in New York.

The clusters participating in this initiative are some of the members of the Catalonia Clusters program: CataloniaBIO & HealthTech, CENFIM, the Digital Cluster of Catalonia, CEEC, the Foodservice Cluster of Catalonia, the Mental Health Cluster of Catalonia, the Catalan Water Partnership, FEMAC , INDESCAT, CICAT, the KID'S Cluster, Modacc, the Packaging Cluster, the Leather Cluster Barcelona, In-move, the Audiovisual Cluster of Catalonia and INNOVI.

As part of the mission, the clusters will get to know first-hand the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Campus, Harvard University, Boston City Council's technology area, and the world's largest business accelerator. the city, MassChallenge. In addition, the clusters will hold more than 50 individual meetings with leading technology companies and organizations in the region.

During the trip, participants will also receive specialized training from international professionals such as Harvard Business School professor Christian Ketels or a doctorate in artificial intelligence from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Luis Perez-Breva.

Representatives of Catalan clusters will also receive training and attend business conferences dedicated to other sectors. Eric Paley, one of the founders of Founder Collective, will explain how venture capital works in this American region. In addition, InnoLead CEO and columnist for The Boston Globe, Scott Kirsner, will describe Boston's innovative DNA. In previous editions, this initiative has accompanied Catalan clusters to explore alliances in countries such as Singapore, South Korea, Quebec and Israel, as well as other areas of the United States such as New York and Silicon Valley. This is also the second time that Strategic Cluster Week has been held in the state capital of Massachusetts, since 2012.

Clusters in Catalonia

With 30 years of experience, Catalonia is one of the pioneering territories in Europe in promoting cluster policy. ACCIÓ’s Catalonia Clusters program promotes the grouping of companies and entities in the same sector to boost their competitiveness, share resources, generate synergies and project themselves internationally. Currently, the 25 Catalan clusters in the program bring together more than 2,300 companies and associated agents with a total turnover of more than 69 billion euros.