The objective of this exchange programme is to inspire a new generation of specialists and entrepreneurs to achieve a low carbon economy in Europe.
CEU-UCH is one of the host organisations accepting the pioneers who participate in its innovation projects on low-carbon technology.
This exchange programme is conducting its third event at Valencia´s CEU-UCH University, and its objective is to create a new generation of high-level specialists, entrepreneurs and legislators to achieve a low carbon economy in Europe.
Joaquín Ríos, General Director of Industry and Director of IVACE at the Regional Valencian Ministry of Economy, Industry, Employment and Tourism, and Iñaki Bilbao, vice-rector of Investigation and International Relations at CEU-UCH, lead the presentation of the programme in Valencia, which is one of the most active European regions in the initiative.
The “Pioneers into Practice” programme hopes to create a practical learning environment, so that the participating ´pioneers´ can build and exchange knowledge and experiences about the innovation dynamics in low-carbon technology. With placements in host institutions in the participating regions, these innovators will have to give an intersectorial standpoint and make their activities multidisciplinary, working with people from different educational backgrounds and organisations from different sectors.
Pioneers and Categories
Thirty pioneers will be elected from the region of Valencia, ten for each of the categories of the programme: Buildings and Neighbourhood, Transport and Urban Mobility and Industrial Processes. The innovators will work with one amount of up to €8,000 to promote professional exchanges, organise intensive training, and participate in Climate-KIC´s annual Festival of Innovation. José Luis Muñoz, PIP coordinator for Valencia and member of the European Foundation for Valencia (FCVRE), explained the details of this year´s event at CEU-UCH, together with Francisco Ferrando, coordinator of the Regional Innovation Implementation Company (RIC) for Valencia and member of the Valencian Institute of Business Competition (IVACE).
The Competition and Innovation Groups in the three categories have been presented by Mar Alonso, coordinator of the Department of Construction and Sustainability at the Valencian Institute of Construction (IVE), Marcos Signes, manager of IGI Sustainability at the University of Valencia, and Sixto Santonja, project manager at the Technological Institute of Energy (ITE).
Host Organisations
The host organizations are given priority when selecting participating pioneers for the PIP programme. CEU-UCH is one of the host institutions, through the Superior School of Technical Teaching. Its director, Fernando Sánchez, explained the principal IDI projects which the ESET drives in two areas of the programme: sustainable mobility, with the design of the electric IDEA CEU CAR, and efficient construction of solar energy housing with SMLHouse and SMLSystem.
Leire Zubizarreta has also been involved in the event, as head of Applied Chemistry at ITE, another host organisation of the programme. Architect Boris Veliz and engineer Caminos Sara Perales have spoken about their experience as pioneers in past events. In 2012 more than 170 participants were involved in the PIP Programme from Hungría Central (Hungary), Emilia Romagna (Italy), Hessen (Germany), Baja Silesia (Poland) and West Midlands (UK), as well as the region of Valencia (Spain) through the Regional Innovation Implementation Community (RIC).
