The mission of the European Cluster Collaboration Platform
A vibrant platform at the service of the European and international cluster community
Our mission is to be the European online hub for cluster stakeholders (cluster organisations, policymakers and other related stakeholders from the cluster ecosystem) and the reference one-stop-shop for stakeholders in third countries aiming to set up partnerships with European counterparts.
Strengthening the European economy through collaboration
We build on the solid foundations that have already been established by the ECCP merged with the European Observatory for Clusters and Industrial Change (OECIC) and the European Resource Efficiency Knowledge Centre (EREK). Since 2015, the ECCP has acted as a platform for industrial clusters to come together and strengthen the European economy through collaboration. The ultimate impact that we seek is to strengthen the competitiveness and sustainability of Europe’s economy and industry, particularly SMEs, improving their performance in terms of productivity, innovation, internationalisation and resource efficiency.
Modern tools for organisations
The ECCP acts as a service facility aiming to provide cluster organisations, cluster partnerships, initiatives and networks, cluster associations and resource efficiency support actors (EREK) with a variety of modern tools. Furthermore, these tools also enable training providers and public/policy institutions to:
- Make efficient use of networking instruments (search and find potential partners and collaboration opportunities)
- Develop collaboration trans-nationally (within Europe) and internationally (beyond Europe)
- Support the emergence of new value chains through cross-sectoral and cross-industrial cooperation
- Access the latest quality information on cluster development through news announcements and events
- Improve their performance and increase their – as well as their members’ – competitiveness
- Build up knowledge and capacities on industrial ecosystems and cluster development.
The services of the ECCP include:
- Dynamic mapping of over 1,200 profiled cluster organisations worldwide
- The largest information hub for clusters offering the latest news and open calls to a broad community via the quarterly ECCP newsletter
- A variety of events (webinars, capacity building seminars, conferences) organised by the ECCP, European Cluster Partnerships and the cluster community to foster capacity building and peer discussions
- Matchmaking events supporting the development of cooperation between clusters in Europe and beyond
- An extensive knowledge database featuring a mapping of regional, national, international and sectoral cluster networks, toolkits and publications developed by the ECCP, European Commission, academia and larger community, as well as the EREK knowledge database with best practices of environmental and resource efficiency technologies
- Detailed information on four the European Cluster Partnerships and a dedicate Partnership forum for members
- Another forum for Cluster Associations and Networks to foster mutual learning and the exchange on activities and funding opportunities
- A partner search facility, where cluster organisations can find potential partners and a ClusterXchange facility for them to exchange offer and demand directly through private messaging
- Dedicated pages supporting international cooperation including profiles of selected countries of strategic interest and a technical assistance facility (SMEs Go International)
- The most up-to-date information on key policy areas of the European Commission: green and digital policy, social economy, economy resilience and industrial ecosystems (in focus sections)
Providing rich content
The ECCP not only addresses the needs of cluster managements, but also offers rich content for members of cluster organisation, national cluster associations and meta clusters, training providers and cluster policy makers at regional, national or international level. Furthermore, Resource Efficiency Support actors from the previous European Resource Efficiency Knowledge Centre (EREK) have been incorporated into the ECCP. Although the European cluster organisations, by their number and long history of development, make an important part of the platform, ECCP is open and connected to the whole world, with a special focus on certain specific third countries of strategic interest (see International).
Developing collaboration
Being at the service of the cluster community, with a unique offer of facilities and tools to create a favourable environment for collaboration to emerge and develop, the ECCP aims to become the leading European hub for international cluster cooperation, building cluster bridges between Europe and the world.