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Participation at the Mission of key partners of the innovation ecosystem from the Košice region to Finland

Košice regional representative of AmCham Slovakia participated in September 2022 in the Business delegation from Slovakia to Finland, consisting of key stakeholders & partners of the innovation ecosystem in Košice region.

The mission was organized by Košice Regional Chamber of Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The purpose of this mission was to explore the current state of the innovation ecosystem in Finland, to meet with relevant actors and stakeholders who have contributed to its creation and continue to contribute to its functioning. The members of the mission had the opportunity to see the facilities and meet with representatives of Aalto University, Laurea University of Applied Sciences, University of Helsinki, Haaga Helia University of Applied Sciences, while they also had the opportunity to visit innovative startup centers or innovation hubs that are part of universities in Finland, some of which have already celebrated their 25th anniversary.  Members of the mission also visited the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra, where they had the opportunity to learn about the calls for data-sharing support, which open the door for cooperation also in Slovakia. The mission also included a visit to the Finnish Chamber of Commerce and, last but not least, to the Slovak Embassy in Finland. At the end of the mission, the participants had the opportunity to meet with representatives of the second largest city in Finland - Eespo, and learn more about how the innovation ecosystem in the region of the second largest city in Finland has been developed with the help of local universities.

In a nutshell, it can be stated that in terms of the level of cooperation between the different components of society, the development of cooperation between the state, local government, academia, and business, the Finns are clearly a great role model for countries like Slovakia. All of missions’participants were absolutely inspired by the fact that as long as there is a strong mutual trust across the whole society and a will to cooperate in the name of common - public interest, the creation of an innovative ecosystem becomes a reality surprisingly easily. In other words, where there is a will, there is a way, and if Slovaks want to be in a decade where Finns are now, we need to start reconsidering whether our will is the good of society or the good of the individual, because this is not even a question in Finland.


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