Green innovation: transforming youth employability by connecting academia, industry and policymakers.

Naples, 15 November 2023. Innovation, employability, and the green transition are interrelated challenges that require cooperation across societal pillars, such as universities and research centers, industry and governments, as highlighted in the UfM Ministerial Declaration on Research and Innovation (2022). In order to explore policies and initiatives that contribute to this dialogue, a conference was organized by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the National Research Council of Italy (CNR), also as part of the activities part of the Mediterranean Day (28 November).

The primary aim was to explore the requirements and possibilities for strengthening collaborative endeavors among Academia, Ministry, and Industry representatives for the promotion of a sustainable and environmentally friendly Mediterranean region. The conference also presented the main outcomes of the study “Green innovation and employability in the Med through the triple helix,” commissioned by the UfM, supported by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ), and carried out by the Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED). The gathering allowed to further explore and identify new opportunities and exemplary practices that contribute to the establishment of a sustainable economy through research, innovation, and employability in the Euro-Mediterranean area, linking it with sustainable economic growth and job creation.

The Conference saw the participation of representatives from the three pilot UfM Member States part of the Study (Italy, Jordan, and Tunisia), along with different Mediterranean researchers.

The conference was opened by CNR’s Unit for International Relations Director, Ms. Virginia Coda Nunziante, and UfM’s Deputy Secretary General for Higher Education and Research, Álvaro Albacete, who said: “the “green transition” requires horizontally new skills, new research, new technology, both for the “new” economic fields (such as renewable energy) or those long-existing but that need to be updated with sustainability in mind, such as agriculture. The hope of the Union for the Mediterranean is that this study may shed a light on the importance of investing in the knowledge triangle comprising research, continuity of education, and innovation.”