The Clust-ER Urban Economy, addressing the challenges of cities and communities of the future, aims to promote experimentation with new urban development models. These models are differentiated by territory type and aligned with changing citizen lifestyles, always keeping citizen involvement at the center of the process.
The new models of organization and use of urban space aim to support digital and ecological transition, social inclusion, strengthening the territory’s attractiveness in terms of improved usability and accessibility of urban services. Overcoming the division between traditional productive sectors, the Clust-ER aims to:
- support innovation in urban services and proximity economy;
- develop urban innovation models that respond to the differentiated needs of the territory;
- integrate research and innovation skills in digital, socio-economic, and urban areas;
- serve as a liaison with local authorities regarding research and innovation for cities.
Working groups
- Mobility and Territory
- Urban Markets
Regional Law on Urban Economy - Just and Inclusive City
- Tourism and the City
Strategic objectives
- Promote a model of “augmented proximity” in urban and territorial planning—one that reconnects spaces for living, working, and accessing services—towards more sustainable and socially inclusive lifestyles.
- Support the development of local social infrastructure and encourage collaborative, sustainable, and community-based models of production and consumption.
- Foster the digital transformation, customization, and functional innovation of products and services, adding value even in more traditional sectors such as crafts, retail, and food.
- Redesign service delivery and production chains through new organizational models based on innovation, inclusion, equity, and sustainability (e.g., community cooperatives, energy communities).
- Develop place-based approaches tailored to the specific needs of different types of territories—ranging from dense urban areas and metropolitan regions to intermediate zones, rural, and mountain areas.
- Integrate digital research and innovation with expertise from the social, urban, and economic sciences to ensure that new solutions are both relevant to real needs and economically sustainable over time.
- Leverage European opportunities for project development, skills enhancement, and investment—such as the 100 Climate Neutral Cities by 2030 initiative, the New European Bauhaus, Intelligent Cities Challenge, Affordable Housing Initiative, and the Pact for Skills in Proximity and Social Economy.
Other Clust-ERs
There are 11 Clust-ERs operating across Emilia-Romagna, each supporting the competitiveness of the region’s key production sectors, aligned with regional development and innovation strategies.
Within the Clust-ERs, research laboratories and innovation centers from the High Technology Network work alongside companies and higher education institutions to form interdisciplinary critical masses—amplifying opportunities and driving forward high-impact, strategic initiatives.
They are key players in the regional innovation ecosystem coordinated by ART-ER, Emilia-Romagna’s consortium for innovation and sustainable growth. In collaboration with businesses, Technopoles, High Technology Network laboratories, innovation centers, and the training system, Clust-ERs actively contribute to the region’s development.
The Clust-ERs of the Emilia-Romagna Region are part of the Clust-ER initiative promoted by ART-ER.
The project is funded by the European Funds of the Emilia-Romagna Region – Pr Fesr 2021-2027.
