Creative SpIN
VII Transnational Event
Spillovers for Innovation – Mons, 9-11 February 2015
2
All the 9 Partner cities attended the 7th Creative SpIN Transnational Seminar, namely, Birmingham,
Lead Partner, Essen, Bologna, Tallinn, Rotterdam, Košice, Obidos, Kortrijk and Mons, the Host.
The Creative SpIN Project
Creative SpIN aims at identifying the best tools and methods to stimulate creative spillovers. It will do that led
by the so called “3 Ps”: Partners will test new PROCESSES, experiment new learning methods to grow
creative PEOPLE, as well as identify a number of key PROJECTS, which will act as “demonstrators” of
creative spillovers.
Creative
spillovers
The 3Ps will be “explored” through activities to be carried out at both the local and transnational level, with
focus on a number of sectors of common interest for Partners, namely:
-
Urban Development/Energy
Manufacturing
ICT/R&D
Tourism
Health
Education
VII Transnational Event
3
Creative SpIN’s Transnational Event in Mons was arranged in combination with the official launch of
“Creative Valley”, the new hub in the « Heart of Hainaut » (Mons and the Centre region) aiming at connecting
cultural, digital and creative practitioners in the area with a view to foster long-term economic redevelopment.
The ambition for the hub is to become an incubator for local projects and international cooperation.
Event combined presentations of local spillover projects and site visits, including of Mons 2015’ major
exhibitions. The programme was a great opportunity for partners to understand the concept of “creative
spillovers” applied to the ICT field as well as to apprehend the role of a big cultural event like Mons European
Capital of Culture 2015 as a broker of new trandisciplinary interactions, exchanges and cooperation for the
city.
MONS 2015 AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP A CREATIVE
ECONOMY THROUGH ICT & CULTURE
4
On the first day, Nicola De Palma (Webmaster, city
of Mons) guided the group throughout the city and
its creative major creative assets (Mons 2015, Café
Europa, academic research and training centres as
well as state-of-the art creative companies ….). The
title of European Capital of Culture (ECoC) “Mons
2015” represents a truly unifying element of different
initiatives and actors who were not previously used
to work together.
The activities were kicked-off by a visit to the new
Tourism Office “Visit Mons”, located in the Grand
Place. The Director, Natacha Vandenberghe
explained that ICT has been fully integrated in the
city’s strategy to promote culture and boost tourism.
At the Tourism Office, it is possible to get
information on the city through interactive touchscreens, a serious game is available for kids and
adults to discover about the “Doudou” 1 and a app
has been created (“VisitMons”) on the occasion of
Mons 2015 to allow tourists to easily organise the
stay in the city. A video is also permanently shown
to give visitors a “taste” of what Mons 2015 is going
to be.
sites. Local authorities believe that cities of this size
have a future due to their high well-being, security
and mobility standards.
The process to become ECoC started ten years
ago, explained Caroline Kadziola (Head of
International Relations, Mons 2015). The challenge
ahead was to recover from the decline of the
traditional industries and the subsequent crisis of
the 70s-80s. The city bet on the combination of
culture, ICT and tourism as a possible answer to the
crisis and the need to adapt quickly to the evolving
society.
Strong focus on ICT started with the arrival of
Google and its server centre in the city, back in
2007.
The Digital Innovation Valley, just outside the city
centre, was launched in the same period. It now
counts more than 100 digital start-ups as well as
state-of-the art institutions and organisations,
amongst which:



Mons 2015 and the transformative
power of culture and ICT
Mons is a small sized city (around 95.000
inhabitants) but with a very rich heritage – the
Beffroi, the Mundaneum museum, the Théâtre Le
Manège, etc. – including five UNESCO heritage
The “Doudou” or “Ducasse de Mons” is a popular festival
that happens every year during the Trinity Sunday (57
days after Easter). Since 2005, it is part of the UNESCO
Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
1
The Microsoft Innovation Center (MIC)
which settled in Mons in March 2009 to
develop applications in the field of health
and
accompany
start-ups
in
the
commercialization and development of
Microsoft products.
TechnocITé which created a training centre
in July 2009 specialised in digital media
working closely with the MIC. The
Technological Business Center (TBC) at
TechnociTé hosts a business accelerator,
linked to the activities generated by the
MIC.
Very
innovative
and
successful
organisations such as I-Movix, a local
company specialised in « slow motion » that
acquired international reputation on the
occasion of the Olympic Games in Beijing,
the research centre NUMEDIART of the
University
of
Mons
specialised
in
technological arts and new interfaces, and
Virtualis, a development centre working on
virtual images.
Mons 2015 is an ambitious and challenging project
that aims at making the most of the city’s cultural
and ICT resources to attract new visitors as well as
to help the city’s transition to a new economy. The
objective is to put the city and the region back in the
European map.
Mons 2015 has thus put in place a truly
“metamorphosis” process – metamorphoses have
arisen:
5
-
-
in the urban space, with the creation of a
new Congress Centre by the American
architect Libenskind, a new train station by
the Spanish architect Calatrava (to be
finished by end of 2017), a new centre for
contemporary music and the opening of 5
new museums (that will open next April);
in people’s minds thanks to the
development of a rich artistic and cultural
program including 4 seasons, 35 highlights
and more than 300 events in total.
Mons 2015 will also be “on tour” thanks to the
synergies created with other cities such as Pilsen
(the other ECoC for 2015) and partner cities in
Belgium and France with a view to boost mobility
and spread impacts across boundaries.
Mons 2015 counts on a budget of € 70 million2, not
including ERDF funding for building construction.
Lille 2004 has been taken as a benchmark: the
French city indeed estimated that the title helped
Lille gain 10 years in terms of image and registered
a multiplier of 6 for each euro invested. Mons would
like to see something similar happen.
“Café Europa”: ICT and creativity to
foster social innovation across Europe
During the first industrial revolution, cafés were
popular meeting places for different groups of
people. Today the concept of cafés as meeting
spaces has disappeared.
The question behind the Café Europa project is: in
the third industrial revolution, how can these places
of encounters be re-activated?
Café Europa is one of the major projects of Mons
2015. It aims at building a network of European
cities to share together experiences and then see
the results - such as listening to the same music in
different places, preparing lunch in one city with
ingredients sent by other cities in Europe, etc.
Café Europa will make use of a small fab lab to
allow creative people to experiment new materials
and ideas. It will offer 6 residency programmes (3
The budget includes € 2 million of private funding
provided by the major sponsors, while other sponsors
contribute with smaller amounts going from € 300.000 to €
500.000.
2
weeks) to artists from different countries to work on
innovative projects during the residency. It will invite
people to build solar panels together with other
cities. It will also invite citizens to send videos on
Mons 2015 that will then be edited in a single crowd
sourced video by using an app already tested by Ars
Electronica. “Mons 2015 from citizens” will then be
showed on a wall.
Café Europa will “invade” different spaces in the
city, from the courtyard of the “Carré des arts” where
the local art school is located, to the new Maison du
Design and other ones (UMons, Télé MB,
Mundanuem…) as from March 2015.
The project gathers very different partners – from
cities to labs, art galleries, etc. Each “session” is
different according to the partners involved. The
only constant is to create very community-based
activities, while providing the necessary IT
infrastructure to make international shared
experience work.
Café Europa is a very experimental project, the first
example of this kind in the history. There was an
important similar project in Los Angeles a couple of
years ago, but it does not exist anymore.
The project gathered a lot of attention during the
presentation in Mons. Both Rotterdam and Tallinn
asked for more information about how to join.
Requirements to jump in are really minimal (like
disposing of an internet connection). The highest
expense is the coordination work carried out in
Mons. The team is open to new cooperation which
can be either occasional or carried out on a longer
term basis.
“Creative Valley”: a creative hub to
encourage
hybridization
and
transdisciplinary collaboration towards
a new economy
“Creative Valley” is a new initiative introduced by
the city of Mons in response to a call for ideas
launched as part of the regional framework
programme to boost creativity and innovation
“Creative Wallonia”. The objective of “Creative
Valley” is to support the transition of the traditional
economy towards a creative economy by
encouraging open innovation, networking and
transdisciplinary cooperation in the “Mons-Borinage”
and “Centre” regions.
Mons and the surrounding area host a number of
actors increasingly operating in the creative
economy: 2 big universities in the city (University of
Mons and UCL Mons – Université Catholique de
6
Louvain) as well as incubators, conferences, events
and, festivals. This creative ecosystem was seen as
a fertile raw material to build a networked creative
hub, with focus on specific pillars: tourism,
museums, Mons 2015, Digital Innovation Valley and
design.
The peculiarity of this initiative lies in its “bottom-up”
nature. “Creative Valley” indeed aims at better
coordinating and connecting existing initiatives,
actors and resources, under the supervision of
Sophie Grulois working for the city of Mons
(economic department). The idea is to make the
most of the existing rather than imposing strict rules
or directions.
The project gathers 25 partners, amongst which
local authorities, the Foundation Mons 2015, local
and international companies, universities, museums,
events and research centres.
“Creative Valley” comprises 5 working axes:

Axis 1: Training in Creative Economy

Axis 2: Promotion of the Creative Economy

Axis 3: Animation of the territory

Area 4: International Development (led by the
Wallonia region)

Area 5: Dissemination of knowledge (storytelling)
Rethinking the role of museums as
“creative connectors” contributing to
the raise of the creative economy
While creativity is expected to become pervasive in
today’s society, the “absorption” of new creative
practices by established institutions is not so
obvious.
In the last few years, Xavier Roland (Director,
Museum Cluster – cultural department of the city)
has dared to challenge the way museums are
traditionally managed. There exist two possible
ways to manage museums today, he said:
-
Museums can be managed in “isolation”
from what happens around; or
-
Museums can be managed in connection
with other museums and organisations in
the city, with a view to contribute to a
dynamic local cultural industry.
In Mons, there are 12 museums and 5 new ones will
open in April. The challenge is to test a new
management model, encouraging transversal
collaborations. It is not easy, but it is possible. Mr.
Roland gave two examples of how museums can to
be concretely involved in creative projects.
a) Smart Heritage:
-
Museums can experiment new things in
cooperation with local research centres and
then show prototypes.
-
In relation to jobs and the digital revolution,
museums can work with students to explain
societal evolutions and the kind of jobs that
will be needed in the future.
-
Museums could also work with the adult
education centre, Technocité, where
students work on serious games and 3D
products. These could be further explored
and improved in museums, also as a way to
catch new audiences.
b) New generation of exhibitions:
Museums can make use of technology in interactive
ways so that people can better understand and “live”
the exhibition. Possibilities are infinite: from the
combination of different media (something that the
local museums would like to experiment), to the
internet of things (for instance each item in the
exhibition is digitally connected to a Haiku telling its
story), to web documentaries, web TV, fab labs in
museums, serious game on the ongoing exhibitions,
etc.
Museums are connected to the city and its life. As
life is evolving, museums should, too. Theoretical
thinking is needed to reconsider their role in society
but there is also a need to experiment this new role
with the help of very concrete projects. Dynamic
cultural cities are better placed to contribute to the
emergence of sound cultural industries, Mr. Roland
concluded.
One of the biggest challenges now in Mons is to link
museums with the new initiatives emerging in the
city on the promotion of the creative economy, such
as “Creative Valley”.
1) A “Creative Jam”3 with an innovative
format: during a weekend (24-26 April
2015), around 100 people will gather and
work in teams to create a digital project,
with no specific requirement for the final
outputs. Prototypes will be showcased. The
jam
is
open
to
creative
persons/professionals and people with
technical competences. The theme of the
jam will be chosen through a very much
collaborative and bottom-up process. Before
the event, Fishing Cactus will distribute
5000 coasters in cafés with the objective of
promoting the event and invite people to
share a short sentence about a story that
they would like to tell. Sentences will be
voted online and the most voted one will
become the theme of the jam. The entire
story behind the sentence will be revealed
at the end of the Jam. A “post-mortem”
session will be organised afterwards to
assess results.
Cross-disciplinary cooperation at the
heart of the Creative Valley’s partners
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Creative Valley gathers a number of creative actors
located in the city of Mons and the surrounding
region, amongst which Fishing Cactus, the
Mundaneum Museum, La Fabrique des Singes and
NUMEDIART, all present at the Creative SpIN’s
Transnational Meeting. Their activities are
introduced below.
FISHING CACTUS
Fishing Cactus is a video game company started in
Mons in 2008. Only 250 people work in this sector in
Belgium (compared to 5.000-10.000 in France
depending on the source), Laurent Grimiaux
(Commercial Director) said, but video games are
estimated to generate higher revenues than music
and cinema together. Recent statistics indeed show
that 63% of the active population plays game at
least once a week. Fishing Cactus is pushing
Belgium to invest in this sector as done by Finland.
Finland injected money in video games and created
the right environment for companies to start up and
grow internationally (such as Rovio Entertainment,
the creators of Angry Birds).
1) A prototype of game where loosing is a
good thing. This idea is inspired by the need
to help people stay creative as they are
when they are in their childhood. Whilst
schools often put people “on tracks”, Fishing
Cactus insists on the need to develop the
concept of risks and encourage people to
think by themselves and try things out.
MUNDANEUM
The Mundaneum was an institution created in 1910,
following an initiative begun in 1895 by Belgian
lawyers Paul Otlet and Henri La Fontaine, as part of
their work on documentation science. The ambition
was to gather together the entire world's knowledge
and classify it according to a system they developed
called the Universal Decimal Classification.
In other words, Otlet and La Fontaine envisioned a
coding system that anticipates the Internet. They are
its forgotten prophets.
In order to “fertilise” other sectors through the
creativity that characterise the gaming world,
Fishing Cactus is now working on two new projects:
Due to such unique history as well as Google’s
“proximity” (some of its servers are located nearby),
the Mundaneum (which was initially located in
Brussels and then moved to Mons in 1988) has
recently established a partnership with Google. The
company helped to find international ambassadors,
organise exhibitions and build new connections with
universities in the US. In addition, a yearly grant
programme supports digital literacy projects (for
instance the tablet equipment of the church
3
http://www.creativejam.be/
8
Collegiale de Sainte Waudru is sponsored by
Google).
universities. Collaborations can result in new
publications, technological tools or art productions.
Collaboration has also been established between
Mons and the Google data centre in Finland, with a
view to explore the kind of added value that the
Google’s presence brings. Two study visits took
place with focus on culture & technology, aimed at
exploring possible cooperation opportunities 4.
NUMEDIART is equipped of six labs on:
The Mundaneum museum, currently
renovation, will reopen on 11th June 2015.
-
under
-
Motion captures
Performative media
Multimedia info retrieval
Smart Spaces (for instance installation of
cameras in rooms to analyse what people
are doing)
Augmented reality (interactive 3D mapping)
3D Design
LA FABRIQUE DES SINGES
La Fabrique des Singes is an open digital space
founded by 4 creative young people from Liège and
Mons, having their background in arts and event
management. This space – which will open in March
2015 - is aimed at boosting social innovation and
testing new economic models. It will include a pop
up store for creative works from Mons and beyond
as well as a space with a 3D printer available for
any kind of creative use. The openness and
flexibility that characterises this space is expected to
help promote partnerships and emerging networks
in the city of Mons and beyond. This space would
also like to act as a “window” for other initiatives
such as the Café Europa (e.g.works done during the
Café Europa could be shown here).
La Fabrique des Singes is entirely private-funded,
but only a small budget was needed to start the
project (mostly renovation costs to arrange the
space). The space is owned by the city who rents it
to La Fabrique for a low price.
Sources of income are different, from European to
regional projects.
NUMEDIART is currently working on the
development of an urban living lab: “DigiSTORM –
les nouveaux térritoires numériques”. This lab
includes three main projects: one on augmented
reality CityLIGHT (€ 30k, 1 year) consisting in a
“light mapping” of a city building; another one on
performing arts - Voix des anges (€ 50 k 1 year) and
a third one on Smart Spaces - CityGATE (€ 30k, 1
year).
NUMEDIART has recently started a first time
cooperation with TechnociTé (brining the workforce)
and La Maison de l’Entreprise (bringing companies
and business competences) to bring excluded
people closer to technologies.
NUMERDIART is also working with companies to
help them develop their own games.
Discussion
The space is already quite well-known on social
media, beyond expectations. In a few weeks, its
Facebook page totalised more than 2100 likes.
NUMEDIART
The NUMEDIART Institute for Digital Arts
Technologies5 was created in 2010 as part of the
University of Mons (UMONS). The Institute, which
today employs 75 people, amongst whom there are
10 permanent workers, has gained international
reputation in the field of sound, image and video
treatment.
The centre mainly works on short-time research
projects (3-6 months) with researchers, artists,
companies (such as Franco Dragone), startups and
4
On
the
topic,
monscommunityrelations.google.com
5 www.numediart.org
see
also :
The small size of the city is considered an
advantage to build relations. Normally, it takes time
to understand that you can collaborate with local
stakeholders, but actually more ideas can be shared
and understood by people who share the same
culture and language. In Xavier Roland’s words,
“Small is beautiful! We are strong like this”. Also,
reflectors pointed on Mons 2015 have encouraged
the city to do more and better.
Most recent initiatives come from the bottom:
everybody is trying to do things together and
improving things. “Creative Valley” did not really
come from the top, but it was the result of the
recognition of initiatives raised from local actors.
Several speakers reminded that it is extremely
important to give citizens the opportunity to improve
their own city as they do not want to leave. Similarly
to Mons, people in Charleroi want to do something
to get better but do not want to leave the city.
Today, people are called to be part of the city. 10
years ago, it was not the case.
9
Storytelling, however, remains a responsibility of the
local authority who is the one who can make a
synthesis of the evolutions and contribute to a new
dynamism and image of the city.
This first day ended with a visit to the exhibition
“Mons Superstar!” at the Anciens Abattoirs,
representing a perfect integration of new
technologies in a (traditional) exhibition space.
Tablets are provided to all visitors to discover in a
funny and interactive way about talented people
from Mons.
CREATIVE SPIN: LESSONS LEARNT AND NEXT STEPS
Major learning points from the project
Social innovation by:
The Creative SpIN’s Lead Expert, Philippe Kern,
introduced and moderated the afternoon session
hosted by the new Maison du Design. The first part
was a structured discussion where partners were
invited to share major learning points from the
project and possible next steps. A number of key
questions were asked. Answers were then analysed
and summarised below.
Parallel to the workshop, partners’ representatives
were called one by one to do video interviews about
Creative SpIN and major learning points. The
audiovisual company Magicowl from Mons will edit a
short and fun video clip that will be officially
presented during the final conference of the project
will take place in Birmingham on 21-22 April 2015.
a) What are the findings
messages from the Project?
or
-
-
Policy messages are as follows:
-
-
policy
-
The concept of creative spillover is not sufficiently
known. This means that traditional prejudices
amongst disciplines and sectors continue to play a
discouraging role. More should be undertaken at
policy level to enable interactions between skills and
markets.
-
Throughout the project, the ability of artists, creative
professionals as well as culture and creative
industries to assist in innovation has been differently
shown. They can contribute to:
-
-
Economic innovation by:
-
-
Improving design of product (product
design) and management process (design
thinking)
Developing new products and services (outof-the-box thinking)
Refining
marketing
actions/strategies
(cultural customisation)
Improving management of human resources
(by
improving
communication,
team
building)
Improving the image of institutions or
companies through creative campaigns
Providing sense and meanings to projects
(linked to local culture and customs or usercentered development)
Addressing societal challenges and urban
planning needs.
-
-
-
Take into account local cultural resources
(talents, cultural institutions, creative
industries) in innovation strategies.
Map local cultural resources (including
cultural institutions) that can be mobilised to
foster creativity and innovation.
Integrate cultural investment in economic
development
strategies
(to
build
interconnections, to make the cultural
investment more sustainable, to build
creative capacities).
Find people in the city, with a motivation
and ability to act as linking pins between
different sectors with various codes,
vocabularies and culture.
Valorise and support the development of
culture and creative industries at local level
to generate new economic activities.
Use public funding and tendering processes
to motivate interdisciplinary collaborations
through projects or existing institutions
associating culture and creative industries.
Find people in the city that can act as linking
pins between different sectors with various
codes, vocabularies and culture.
At governance level, culture department
should be associated in the work of the
economic development department.
Establish evaluation methods to monitor
impact of policies on the ecosystem.
Change and challenge habits (creative
disruption).
-
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Use creativity and culture to mitigate poor
health outcomes caused by inactivity and
social isolation. For example, deliver
creative public health services in local
communities and improve therapeutic
processes in hospitals (art therapy).
b) What are the solutions developed by
project partners in their LAPs and
beyond?
Overall, project partners used the exercise to review
their policies in relation to CCIs and consider a more
holistic approach about how to integrate cultural
project. Ad hoc policy tools are going to be
experimented as part of the LAPs, such as the
Creative Commission Rotterdam, to encourage,
among others, match-making, artistic interventions
(A.I.) in companies (A.I programmes in Bologna,
Košice) or multidisciplinary working spaces (Green
House - Bologna, Creative Quarter - Essen).
c) In what way have Project Partners
increased capacity and skills during the
life cycle of the Project?
The impact varied according to the diverse existing
experience of team leaders and the local situation.
In summary, Project Partners highlighted the
following results:
-
-
-
-
-
Better understanding of the role, value and
competences of CCIs.
CCI can help urban regeneration and the
results helped beat initial scepticism.
Enlarged vision of innovation, beyond
technological innovation, to encompass
other forms of innovation which increase
competitive advantage of companies or
territories (image, emotion, experience,
value, meanings).
Discovered the potential of AI in enterprises
and urban regeneration.
Identified means to linking different
ecosystems and breaking silos. Identify new
partners and institutions.
Increased awareness of the need to adapt
languages
according
to
interlocutors/brokers.
Better understanding of the need to provide
more hard evidence to policy makers and
develop measurement tools at local level.
Improved “knowledge capacity” due to
exchanges from transnational meetings
Acquired new competences and skills as
regard the application of the URBACT
methods, in particular the Problem Tree.
resources and CCIs in innovation, urban and
economic local development policies.
The transnational meetings organised during the
project offered the opportunity to consider different
ways to stimulate crossovers and interactions:
through processes, people or projects.
LAPs were essentially used to generate more
understanding amongst stakeholders and enable
encounters. It was the opportunity to build on the
existing and combine it with local resources tested
or met during the implementation phase of the
-
Raised again credibility of CCI policy at
local level and the need to formulate a
vision.
d) What are the future perspectives at
Project and Partner Levels
Project partners acknowledge that the project
developed unique knowledge in Europe on a hot
topic. It would be good to build on the acquired
knowledge.
Some cities highlighted the securing of future local
funding to continue the project (Essen, Košice,
Mons, Bologna and Rotterdam). In Bologna, further
studies will be undertaken with a view to measure
impact and the value of creative innovation. Essen
felt renewed enthusiasm of policy makers
considering the impact of the Kreativ.Quarter in
regenerating parts of the city.
Analysis of LAPs
In line with the objectives of the project, the Lead
Expert analysed the content of the LAPs with a view
to identify the different kinds of processes and tools
that cities will mobilise in the next few years, to
stimulate spillovers.
The following typology of policy tools was
identified and presented to the partners for
discussion:
1. Governance/structure (Rotterdam, Kortrijk,
Birmingham)
2. Dedicated place based creative innovation
(Bologna/Birmingham)
3. Training
and
multi-disciplinary
skills
(Bologna, Kortrijk, Kosice, Birmingham)
4. Incentives:




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Competitions and Challenges (Bologna,
Birmingham)
Projects (Mons, Kosice, Rotterdam)
Artistic interventions (Bologna, Kosice)
Strengthening
existing
institutions/initiatives (Kortrijk, Essen,
Birmingham)
5. Evaluation (Essen)
These measures are expected to foster spillovers
and help cities reach a number of different policy
objectives. The following have been identified:



Support
economic
innovation
&
entrepreneurship (Rotterdam):
- Tourism (Kosice, Mons)
- Manufacturing (Kortrijk, Bologna)
Urban planning (Essen, Tallinn)
Social innovation (Rotterdam, Birmingham)
- Health and Education (Birmingham)
The full presentation on the analysis of LAPs and
lessons learnt is attached at the end of this report. It
has also been sent to the Project Partners for
comments.
This analysis will feed into the Creative Spillover
Smart Guide, currently under preparation. This will
be a user-friendly tool aimed at supporting cities to
develop their spillover strategies.
CREATIVE ECONOMY CONFERENCE AND OFFICIAL LAUNCH
OF “CREATIVE VALLEY”
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“Creativity, culture and knowledge: new
motors of economic development, new
tools
for
regional
and
urban
development”
-
Charles Landry studied the inclusion of
culture in urban projects. The core idea is
that artists’ communities in urban areas
will attract people and revitalise urban
quarters.
The second day opened with a keynote speech by
Christine Liefooghe, held at the just opened new
Congress Centre by Libenskind. The Centre is one
of the major architectural works there were planned
by the city as part of Mons 2015 and its coveted
physical metamorphosis.
-
David Throsby, inspired by the DCMS and
other international reports, mainly pointed to
the importance of investing in creative
industries as a major regeneration asset
that will attract talents and generate new
economic activities and jobs.
Mrs. Liefooghe is a university professor at the
University Lille 1, with a background in geography.
She has extensively worked on creative industries,
particularly in the framework of two research
programmes on creative cities launched by the
French government (2009-2011), and on the
knowledge and creative economy (2012-2014). In
April 2015, she will publish a new book on the
subject of the creative economy and territories,
including an overview of ongoing debates on
definitions (culture and creativity, creative cities or
cities of creation, talents in Europe, Great Britain,
France).
-
Richard Florida developed his theory
around the concept of the “creative class”
and the need for cities to create the right
conditions (including urban amenities) to
attract creative people which will in turn
attract companies, investments and new
economic activities.
Christine first provided an overview of recent
economic developments and the emergence of the
called “knowledge-based economy”. Three main
concepts can be distinguished: the “creative
economy”, conceptualized in the UK since the 80s,
the “cultural economy” (concept understood for the
Anglo-Saxon countries but still a bit new for some
other countries in Europe) and the “economy of
innovation”. These concepts have more and more
intermingled in recent years. As Christian
Barrière put it (2006): “in a world of uncertainty,
innovation by accumulation of knowledge finds its
limits. Creative innovation adds a symbolic
dimension”.
Creativity has been conceptualized also as a
political idea. The debate is still open on whether to
consider the Creative City as a new economic
model or rather as an urban utopia.
Culture is indeed called upon to answer the political
challenge to find appropriate answers to the crisis of
the traditional industry.
Three main theoretical approaches have been
developed in the literature:
These authors have largely inspired local
development policies in the last decades. Retaining
talents remains a big issue: incubators and coworking spaces are useful but other conditions are
needed to retain them (for instance the development
of links with international companies and markets).
In his publications, prof. John Hartley has noticed
that whilst top down policies have been developed
until now, bottom up policies are increasingly
emerging. While top-down policies support the
industry, bottom up policies start from the initiative
of creative citizens (e.g. consumer-led or co-created
products and services). Products are then
aggregated by creative markets or suppliers.
Lille Métropole was presented as a case study
example of a territory which has extensively
invested in culture and creative industries as part of
urban regeneration projects. The commercial centre
Euralille was one of the first regeneration projects
around which many others were then developed
(Haute Borne, Eurasanté, Euratech, CETI, Plaine
Images,..).
« Core » cultural investment was mainly led by Lille
2004, a very successful example of ECoC that took
Glasgow as a reference point. Lille 3000 was set up
to continue the experience of Lille 2004. Its objective
is to make art and culture an integral part of the
city’s life and let citizens and tourists “experience”
culture and new art forms on a long term basis.
13
It is in such a fertile context that the film “Bienvenue
chez les Ch’tis” was filmed in the region in 2008 with
the support of Nord Pas-de-Calais. The unexpected
success also contributed to new reflections about
how to integrate culture in regional development
plans.
Parallel to a cultural economy policy, increasing
attention has been given to the creative industries,
too. These include, on the one hand, traditionally
strong industries such as textile, direct marketing,
comm/adv, graphic arts, printing, publishing, which
are now labeled as “creative industries”. On the
other, these include emerging creative sectors, such
as fashion, image and design, which are being
supported through specific actions (Maisons de
Mode and regeneration of the quarter Lille Sud, Pole
Images and Imaginarium, and Lille Design).
Numerous creative districts have emerged, too,
across the world, from the Media Park Cologne, to
the Quartier de la Création in Nantes to Creative
Shanghai.
The biggest challenge of the creative economy
remains the lack of sufficient cooperation and
networking between culture, economy and creativity,
Mrs. Liefooghe concluded.
Official launch of Creative Valley
In his opening speech, Elio Di Rupo, Mayor of Mons
and former Belgian Prime Minister (see picture with
the Creative SpIN partners on the right),
remembered the key role of ideas to nurture the new
economy, especially in a country like Belgium that
needs to find innovative solutions to modernize its
economic system after the post-industrial crisis.
Numerous infrastructural investments have been
possible, particularly thanks to the support of
European funds. The new Congress Centre is an
example, together with the five new museums and a
music centre that will open in April.
Mons is also increasingly investing in new
technologies, which brings additional added value to
the region. The objective is to capture new trends
and skills amongst young people who are
developing exceptional initiatives and projects. The
city has a noticeable potential and strength in this
sense. This needs to seized and supported. The city
needs to be a catalyzer between culture and
creativity but also ensure that the necessary
infrastructure is in place.
Mrs. Sophie Grulois (Coordinator, Creative Valley)
then reminded the objectives and axes of Creative
Valley, which will be governed by the cooperative
Co-nnexion so to encourage a participatory
governance (all the cooperative members are
involved in decision-making processes).
Patrice Thiry (Director, Maison de l’Entreprise), then
took the floor and explained that Maison de
l’Entreprise is very much in favour of this new
initiative. It has been the opportunity to introduce the
concept of creativity in companies via des focus
groups. It has been also the occasion to start new
collaborations, notably with Fishing Cactus for the
development of a serious game.
TOUR OF THE CREATIVE DIGITAL COMPANIES & CENTRES @
PARC INITIALIS
14 Technocité – Adult Education Centre
for digital skills
The afternoon of the second day was dedicated to
site visits: Creative SpIN partners first went to the
adult education centre TechnociTé where they
discovered more about the training programme of
this unique institute. TecnociTé centre offers short
and medium term training entirely relating to new
technologies and the development of digital skills.
These courses mainly target unemployed people
(but also professionals can attend) who are paid
to attend the training, and travel expenses are
reimbursed.
Two courses were presented in more details, one
on stop motion6, and a second one on the
development of Kinect-based video games7. The
group got to know a group of students who
presented their works under development.
This year’s budget amounts to € 40.000 of public
funding. Promotion and “legitimization” were
however the best kind of support that the Festival
received from the city this year.
The accelerator also hosts other very successful
companies such as the start-up Creaceed who
created the app Hydra (that increases the quality
of pictures taken with an iPhone or iPad). The app
soon became one of the ten most downloaded
apps in the world in the AppStore.
The group finally visited Fishing Cactus, located in
a new building appositely built to host the
company. The working space is totally open in
order to encourage knowledge exchange and
flows of ideas.
Training to become cameramen and on CAD
feature the best results in terms of employment.
TechnociTé also works with local companies
looking for digital competences. It has for instance
collaborated with Art-Chétype, an association
working across medicine and the arts, in order to
create a new video game to better connect the
world of creativity and medicine.
Companies: Jelly, Reaklab and Fishing
Cactus
TechnociTé also hosts a business accelerator8.
The group visited two graphic and video
production studios: Studio Jelly and Reaklab,
both contributing to the organisation of the Pixel
Festival. This is a free event specialised in web
communication. Founded a couple of years ago,
the festival raised lots of interest quickly passing
from a few hundreds to some thousands
participants.
6
http://www.technocite.be/index.php/fr/component/details
form/?form=1064
7
http://www.technocite.be/index.php/fr/component/details
form/?form=1060
8 Rents increase year by year in order to encourage
companies to leave the space and grow outside the
accelerator.
Microsoft Innovation Centre
The Microsoft Innovation Center (MIC) is a nonprofit organization based in Mons, which was born
from a public-private partnership between the
Wallonia Region and private companies
(Microsoft, HP and VOO). It aims to encourage
the development of Walloon companies in the
sector IT (especially those located in the Parc
Initialis).
To do this, the MIC provides numerous
services/support activities to local digital
companies, from the organisation of networking
events, to training on the development of new
apps or technologies, to expert days, etc.
KEY LEARNING POINTS FROM SITE VISIT
15
Mons represents a very interesting example of small sized city which is attempting to make the
most of its cultural resources to shape its future. In the past ten years, the title Mons 2015 had a
prominent leverage effect on the city’s development which resulted in:
-
-
-
A broader understanding of culture, not only as an tenet to preserve the city’s past and
strongly forged identity (traditional feasts such as the Doudou, UNESCO sites, ...) but
also as an asset to make the city more dynamic, attractive and, ultimately, liveable;
A revision of the local cultural policy and growing collaborations between the cultural and
economic departments, respectively in charge of heritage and the creative economy;
A revision of the role of museums in today’s society, more and more assuming an active
role in the city through the combination of culture, arts and ICT;
Increased awareness of the advantages of being a small city, to foster interactions and
dialogue between people that share the same values, culture and language;
Rapid increased of local cooperation between actors who were not used to work
together, including museums, companies, start-ups, research labs, universities and
support institutions such as TechnociTé and La Maison de l’Entreprise;
Increasing number of bottom-up initiatives (Café Europa, La Fabrique des Singes,
Creative Jam, Pixel Festival, Creative Valley…);
Willingness of the local authorities to legitimise and support initiatives from citizens (La
Fabrique des Singes, Creative Jam, Pixel Festival, etc.) through funding, political or
other kind of support.
The city’s ecosystem benefit from the contribution of diverse infrastructures, competences and
expertise:
-
Co-working spaces/hubs thorough the city and the region;
A pretty unique adult educational centre (TechnociTé) offering training to improve digital
skills;
Leading technological companies based in Mons (Google, Microsoft)
A raising number of digital start-ups (i-Movix, Fishing Cactus, etc.)
Research institutes working across arts and new technologies;
Specialised intermediaries such as Maison du Design and Maison de l’Entreprise;
Bottom-up initiatives to foster new encounters and create an informal environment
where social and economic creativity can be unleashed.
The title of European Capital of Culture has become a truly unifying element for local actors
(first-time experimental collaborations have started) as well as an engine of development for
longer term initiatives (e.g. Creative Valley). Mons is so building a promising ecosystem for the
development of a creative economy.
FOCUS ON SPILLOVERS: LESSONS LEARNT
16
From the visit in Mons, Creative SpIN’s partners had the chance to understand more about
the opportunities to be sized to foster a creative economy and possible actions to be
undertaken.
Here some recommendations that have been extracted from the site visit:
Introduce new culture-led visions, practices and narratives in the city by:
-
Using big cultural events as an opportunity to reshape local development strategies
and foster new relations between local actors and talents who are not used to work
together (culture, ICT, tourism, etc…).
-
Rethinking the role of traditional cultural institutions and connecting them to local ICT,
research or educational facilities to develop projects together and make cultural
institutions more attractive to new audiences.
-
Integrating user-led practices in local policies/initiatives to make sure local policies
answer the right needs and make citizens feel part of a “common project”.
-
Promoting cities’ small size as a unique strength to facilitate cross-sectoral
collaboration and maintain good quality of life.
-
Making use of storytelling to communicate about the city and its creative policy.
Create an ecosystem that supports creative entrepreneurship through:
-
Co-working spaces facilitating the emergence of creative activities not requiring big
initial investments.
-
Networking events gathering creative professionals and talents.
-
Accelerators supporting high growth companies, featuring high market potential.
-
Specialised educational facilities supporting the development of creative and digital
skills.
Support bottom-up initiatives that further nurture the local creative ecosystem through:
-
Ad hoc governance structures that help coordinate (rather than imposing) existing
initiatives (e.g. Creative Valley)
-
Mobilisation of all possible means to support bottom-up initiatives (funding, but also
political support/legitimisation, communication support, accessible renting prices,
etc.).
Annex I - Programme
URBACT /
17
MONS / Transnational event:
CREATIVE VALLEY Theme
9-10-11 February 2015
Monday, 9th February
4pm – 6pm
Arrival of the partners
8 pm
Diner @ Le Bistro de Jean Phi
Tuesday 10th February 2015
9.00.- 9.30 am
Official welcome @ Visit Mons
- Ville de Mons / Tourist Office / Natacha Vandenberghe / Head office manager
9.40 - 10.00 am
Introduction to MONS 2015 @ Fondation Mons 2015
- Mons 2015 / Caroline Kadziola / International Public Relation
10.00 - 10.30 am
Coffee break
10.30 -11.00 am
Introduction to CAFE EUROPA & CREATIVE VALLEY @
Fondation Mons 2015
Presentations:
- CAFE
EUROPA / Pascal Keiser / Expert in CCIs
In a" Café Europa " we will Revive on the privileges and remake the world " But we will also
apprehend new technologies, explore 3D printing , chat Network learn from other Europeans.
A dozen European cities partners will welcome one of their upcoming " Café Europa " , which
through their wall communicating " Europa wall" , will allow users to COMMUNICATE Real Time
With Members of other " Europa Cafes »
- Creative
Valley / The concept / Sophie Grulois / Coordinator CCIs
From a traditional economy to a creative economy.
11.00 am
18
Exchange in creative experience / gathering cultural actors and
ICT actors from CREATIVE VALLEY@ Fondation Mons 2015
- Xavier Roland / head office of POLE MUSEAL / Museum today linked with the creative
economy / New generation of Exhibition / NEW CONCEPT : MUSEUM LAB – When the
museum become a living lab
- Laurent Grumiaux / FISHING CACTUS / company of Mons active in the development of serious
game, video games,… / The game as a learning tool / Creative JAM – introducing of an
unique project of co-creation of creative works by artists of different disciplines
- Delphine Jenart / MUNDANEUM : museum created by Paul Otlet and Henri Lafontaine ,
internet precursors / Creative experience with Google
- LA FABRIQUE DES SINGES / PoPupStore – shop and artists and designers workshop in
connection with the FabLab of Mons
- Pr. Thierry Dutoit / UMONS/ University/ Introduction to the project DIGISTORM :
LIVINGLAB university research department for development of cultural and creative
activities
1 - 2pm
Lunch @THEATRE DU MANEGE
2 - 6pm
Welcome @ Maison du Design (House of Design)
- Tour of the Buiding / Barbara Sylvester
Creative SPIN – session @ Maison du Design (House of Design
- Project Deliverables - including partner reports, final project report and grant claim closure
requirements
- Local Action Plans - Review and Actions
4 - 4.30 pm
Coffee break
- Communication Strategy - including Press Releases; Websites; Partner Products
- Final Conference - Birmingham 21-22 April 2015 –including ideas for structure; content, speakers
and site visit options
- URBACT next steps- including Riga ‘Walk Shop’ 6-8th May 2015
6 pm
Proposition: Visit Exhibition Mons Superstar
Innovation: look into it, and you ultimately find men and women inventing, redesigning and
innovating.
Mons Superstar is a must if you wish to encounter great men and women at the heart of a city and
its region, and the perfect introduction to this European Year of Culture. Travel back in time to
explore the dynamism of Mons and learn about the insane wagers and calculated risks, the
triumphs and tribulations of fired-up inventors, zealous idealists and pragmatic engineers, all of
whom have helped transform this city and its surrounding region.
You will discover examples of amazing boldness, optimism and perseverance.
8 pm
Diner @ L’Art des Mets
Wednesday, 11th February 2015
9.30 -12 am
19 Introduction MICX @ MICX ( MONS International Congress
Experience)
With well-structured facilities and a building that epitomises the city’s socio-economic resurgence,
the MICX will stimulate the local economy, not only by offering businesses, universities and
other institutions that organise conferences a modern, excellent venue, but also by breathing
new life into business tourism.
Thanks to these different elements, the conference centre will have a positive impact on a wide
range of different economic sectors (the hotel trade, restaurants, local commerce, tourist and
cultural activities, real estate, catering, technicians, temporary workers etc.) and will play an
active role in raising the profile of Mons in Belgium and further afield.
In the words of Daniel Libeskind himself, who designed the MICX, Mons will be “the nerve
centre of the future”.
A nerve centre that will be able to boast two major projects overseen by internationally renowned
architects, Santiago Calatrava and Daniel Libeskind, who are currently working on Ground Zero in
New York!
10.00 am
Conference: Christine Liefooghe / Professor at Lille University /
Expert in creative economy as territorial development tool
The Conference will pay the theme " Creativity , culture and knowledge : New motors of
economic development, new tools for regional and urban development " and forum
Followed exchange with non- participants.
11.30 am
PRESS Conference:
Cultural, digital and creative actors in the region will gather around common projects in order to
build a real "pole of the creative and cultural industries" based on the local heritage. Objective:
encourage the transition from a traditional economy to a creative economy
12.30 am -1.30 pm
Lunch @ MICX
2 - 4 pm
TOUR of the creative digital companies @ Parc Initialis
- Fishing Cactus
- Microsoft Innovation Center
- Technocité - adult education center - short and medium term training in new technologies
- Studio Jelly et Reaklab: graphic and video studio production
5 pm
Proposition : Visit Exhibition « Van Gogh au Borinage – La naissance d’un artiste »
It was while he was in the Walloon coal-mining area of the Borinage, from December 1878 to
October 1880, that Vincent van Gogh abandoned his career as a preacher and decided to become
an artist. This exhibition takes you through this crucial period, during which the artistic ideas he
developed largely set the course for his work. With some seventy paintings, drawings and letters
by and from Van Gogh, the exhibition – which also includes over twenty works that the artist copied
or that influenced his work – beautifully portrays his various sources of inspiration. The aim is not
just to provide an insight into the beginnings of Van Gogh’s artistic career, but also to depict the
living conditions in the Borinage at that time.
6 pm
free time
20
7 pm
Diner @ Marchal
Annex II – Creative SpIN Participants
21
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
17
19
KEA
KEA
Ville de Mons
Ville de Mons
Ville de Mons
Ville de Mons
Birmingham
Birmingham
Obidos
Obidos
Obidos
Obidos
Kosice
Kosice
Kortrijk
Bologna
Annex III – Slides
KERN
MONTALTO
GRULOIS
MOYART
MAUCCI
DE PALMA
BARRETT
COLUMBANO
SILVESTRE
CELESTE
VIEIRA
GANHAO
MATUSAK
HLADKY
DEVOS
PORRETTA
Philippe
Valentina
Sophie
Laurence
Stéphane
Nicola
Denise
Alessandro
Miguel
Alfonso
David
Paula
Marian
Michal
Franky
Silvia
22
23
24
Other .ppt presentations can be found on the Creative SpIN’s website.
URBACT is a European exchange and learning
programme
promoting
sustainable
urban
development.
It enables cities to work together to develop
solutions to major urban challenges, reaffirming the
key role they play in facing increasingly complex
societal challenges. It helps them to develop
pragmatic solutions that are new and sustainable,
and
that
integrate
economic,
social
and
environmental dimensions. It enables cities to share
good practices and lessons learned with all
professionals involved in urban policy throughout
Europe. URBACT is 181 cities, 29 countries, and
5,000 active participants
www.urbact.eu/project