Learn more about the V INSME Annual Meeting on Building a Knowledge based eco-system for SMEs: Finance, Innovation, Technology and Networking held in Dubai (UAE) on April 20 to 23, 2009.

 Download the presentations made by the speakers during the DIT SMEs Forum holding the V INSME General Assembly.

Further documents related to the V INSME Association General Assembly are available for INSME Members in the Members' Area of the INSME portal at:
http://www.insme.org/

 Have a look at the photo gallery section.

Book your agenda on May from 10-13, 2010 for the next INSME Annual Meeting to be held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event will be co-organised by the SEBRAE, INSME Member.

Find out more about the Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service - SEBRAE.

 Read the presentation made by Mr. Barboza, Director of SEBRAE, during the General Assembly in Dubai.

For details, please contact the INSME Secretariat at:
 secretariat@insme.it

More detailed information will be available in the next months.

The 31st of March 2009 UNCTAD and UNDP renewed their strategic partnership by signing a Memorandum of Understanding which ties up their cooperation with the aim to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in areas of common interest, including: investment, small and medium enterprises, financial and monetary policies.

In addition, this MoU is an important contribution of UNDP and UNCTAD towards the common goals set under the CEB Inter-Agency Cluster on Trade and Productive Capacity.

Read more about the MoU at:
 http://www.unctad.org/Templates/Page.asp?intItemID=4792&lang=1

The McKinsey and Co. analysts, in partnership with the World Economic Forum, have mapped innovation clusters around the world.
This work analyzes over 700 variables, including those driving innovation, such as business environment, government's policies and regulation, along with proxies for innovation output, for example, economic value added and patent applications, with the aim to identify trends and common factors among the success stories.

 To view the map, please click here.

The ASPEN Network of Development Entrepreneurs - ANDE was launched during the ANDE's Global Launch Conference held on 23-24 March 2009 in London, UK.
ANDE, housed within the Aspen Institute, is a network of entrepreneurial intermediaries, funders and experts who collectively plan to manage over 750 M$ in funds over the next 5 years in order to provide management assistance to Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs) in emerging markets.

For further information, please read the following article by The Times at:
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/management/article6047237.ece

 To learn more about ANDE, please download the  brochure and visit the website.

Umbria Innovazione is an Italian non-profit organisation, created by the local body of the Region of Umbria, together with private organisations, specialised in promoting innovation competitiveness, technology transfer, improvement of quality of process or product and development of the local SMEs. Its specific objectives to strengthen the Umbrian industrial and entrepreneurial system are:

- to join and promote cooperation between the innovation supply (research) and related local demand;
- to promote and develop synergies and integration among innovators to improve their focus, capacity and use of resources; and
- to develop and organize cooperation between the finance sector and the enterprise for innovation support.

Umbria Innovazione became a Member of the INSME Association in March 2009.

Learn more at:
 http://www.umbriainnovazione.it

Call for Nominations

The Tech Awards is an international awards program that awards the best innovators from around the world who apply innovative technology solutions for the benefit of humanity. The prize amounts to USD 50,000.00 for each of the following categories: Environment, Economic Development, Education, Equality and Health. Individuals, organizations, and companies for-profit and not-for-profit are eligible.

To submit a nomination, please click here.

The 2010 deadline for nominations is March 31, 2010.

To learn more, visit:
 http://www.techawards.org.

Call for Nominations

The Millennium Technology Prize, awarded by the Millennium Prize Foundation, a Finnish independent fund, represents the Finland's tribute to life-enhancing technological innovations.
The Millennium Technology Prize is awarded for a specific groundbreaking innovation in the field of technology which promotes people's quality of life and sustainable development.
It can be awarded to a research and development team or to a single individual from all over the World.

The award amounts to more than 1 MEur.

Deadline: October 1, 2009.

 Download the Call for Nominations Brochure.

For further information on Millennium Technology Prize, please visit the website at:
 http://www.millenniumprize.fi/en/prize/call-for-nominations/

Call for Papers

The DIME (Dynamics of Institutions and Markets in Europe), the network of social scientists in Europe sponsored by the 6th Framework Programme of the European Union, has recently launched a call for papers for the next DIME Conference on "Experimental methods and Innovation: Broadening and challenging existing knowledge" which will be held in Jena on November 5-7, 2009, at the Max Planck Institute. The conference aims at gathering experimental economists, psychologists, and innovation economists to discuss mutually beneficial exchanges among the various disciplines. Papers should tackle topics as creativity, ambiguity, and learning; entrepreneurship, competition, and market; policy intervention; cooperation and network; resistance to change.

Deadline for submission of abstracts: June 15, 2009.

To learn more, please visit:
 http://www.dime-eu.org/experimental-methods-and-innovation.

The China IPR SME Helpdesk's experts tackled problems related to the Intellectual Property (IP) protection by providing support and information to limit the Intellectual Property Right (IPR) violation and to maximize the chances of a quick and successful resolution in case of infringement which occur during trade fairs in China.

To get more information, please read the article issued by the China IPR SME Helpdesk on Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection at trade fairs followed by a case study and visit the China IPR SME Helpdesk website.

During the second edition of "ContraFake 2009" held on 2 April 2009 in Brussels, the European Commission launched the European Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy with the aim to improve efforts against infringements of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in the EU.

 For more information on EU Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy, please click here.

Furthermore, from the 1st of May 2009 the European Community trade marks get more affordable.

To learn more, please download the  Commission Regulation (EC) No 355/2009 or visit the  Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market - OHIM website.

The 2008 GEM Global Report, published by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, demonstrates how the relationship between entrepreneurship and economic development differs along phases of economic development.
In particular, this 10th annual survey collected data from 43 countries classified as factor-driven countries, efficiency-driven countries and innovation-driven countries.

 Download the GEM Global Report 2008.

To learn more about GEM and its activities, please visit the website at:
 http://www.gemconsortium.org/

Published by the Centre for European Reform (CER), the essay on Is the EU competition policy an obstacle to innovation and growth? analyzes the EU's competition policy as a key factor for explaining the weakness of European innovation. The focus of this paper is on high-tech firms.

Download the complete study at:
 http://www.cer.org.uk/pdf/essay_competition_st_20nov08.pdf

The SME Performance Review, managed by the European Commission - DG Enterprise and Industry, provides information on SMEs and SME related policy issues in Europe with the objective of analysing and present the situation of European SMEs and contributing to monitor the implementation of the Small Business Act for Europe (SBA).

The SME Performance Review is composed by an Annual Report, the SBA fact sheets with more precise information on each EU Member State, and by a set of studies providing more in-depth information on specific issues that are particularly important to European SMEs.

 Download the 2008 Annual Report.

 For further information on the SME Performance Review, please click here.

The Intellectual Property Watch is a non-profit independent news service whose aim is to report on the interests and dynamics that influence the design and implementation of international intellectual property policies.

Read more about the Intellectual Property Watch at:
 http://www.ip-watch.org/

Your Europe - Business is a web portal, set up by the European Commission and EU National authorities, which provides multilingual practical information and online government services to facilitate companies, small firms in particular, to do business across European borders.

 For visit Your Europe - Business, please click here.

"Les Br�ves de l'Europe", is a monthly newsletter edited  by the Wallonia Foreign Trade and Investment Agency (AWEX - INSME Member).
This publication provides SMEs with qualitative information about European Union policy, economic aids, research programmes, publications and events.

"Les Br�ves de l'Europe" is available in French only.
For free subscription and for download the latest issue of Les Br�ves de l'Europe please click here.

 To learn more about AWEX please click here.

1 June 2009
IASP Pre-conference Seminar: "Fundamentals of Science Park Management"
Organized by International Association of Science Park (IASP)
Raleigh, United States

1-4 June 2009
XXVI IASP World Conference on Science and Technology Parks "Future Knowledge Ecosystems"
Organised by IASP - International Association of Science Parks
Raleigh, United States

2 June 2009
THE INNOVATION ECONOMY "Getting new ideas, new partners and new growth for the global economy"
Organized by Science Business
Brussels, Belgium

3-5 June 2009
La Baule 2009 - 7th World Investment Conference "Investing in Global Cities: Opportunities in Adversity"
Organised by EUROPE+ Foundation
La Baule, France

3-5 June 2009
6th World Chambers Congress
Organised by World Chambers Federation - WCF, International Chamber of Commerce - ICC and Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers - FMM
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

7-9 June 2009
EFMD's 2009 Annual Conference "Gaining Strength in Turbulent Times"
Organised by the European Foundation for Management Development - EFMD
Brussels, Belgium
 
8-10 June 2009
2009 Latin America - Caribbean Regional Microcredit Summit
Organized by RESULTS Educational Fund within the framework of Microcredit Summit Campaign
Cartagena, Colombia

8-10 June 2009
The Athens Business Forum "Bridging the Mediterranean"
Organised by SEV - The Hellenic Federation of Enterprises and supported by Invest in Med Programme
Athens, Greece

8-11 June 2009
15th International Economic Forum of the Americas "Adapting to a New World Order: Realities and Challenges"
Organised by the Conference of Montreal in partnership with Power Corporation of Canada
Montreal, Canada

8-12 June 2009
The 28th APEC Small and Medium Enterprise Working Group (SMEWG) Meeting and Symposium on Financial Crisis
Organised by APEC SME Innovation Center and Small and Medium Enterprise Administration - Ministry of Economic Affairs (Chinese Taipei)
Taipei, China

9-10 June 2009
Learning from the Best - Learning to be a Leading Edge Business Incubator
Organised by UK Business Incubation (UKBI)
Barcelona, Spain

11 June 2009
Regions as catalysts of open innovation
Organized by European Regions Research and Innovation Network (ERRIN)
Brussels, Belgium

17-19 June 2009
Triple Helix VII - 7th Biennial International Conference on University, Industry and Government Linkages
Organised by the University of Strathclyde - Glasgow
Glasgow, United Kingdom

17-19 June 2009
World Innovation Summit
Organized by Hit Barcelona
Barcelona, Spain

18-20 June 2009
Hands on Future - International Conference on Innovation, Creativity, Technology and Society
Organized by Marseille Innovation and Fing
Marseille, France

21-24 June 2009
ICSB World Conference 2009
Organised by the International Council for Small Business - ICBS
Seoul, Korea Rep.of

21-24 June 2009
XX ISPIM Conference - The Future of Innovation
Organised by the International Society for Professional Innovation Managememnt (ISPIM) and supported by DANUBE - European Programmes for Training, Research and Technology and Ratio Strategy & Innovation Consulting
Vienna, Austria

23-24 June 2009
10th OECD Forum "The Crisis and Beyond - For a stronger, cleaner, fairer economy"
Organised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - OECD
Paris, France

25 June 2009
"S&T policy in times of crisis: European opportunities and challenges"
Organized by Expert Group "Knowledge for growth"
Brussels, Belgium

29-30 June 2009
International Conference on Technological Readiness for Innovation-based Competitiveness: Promoting an Enabling Information and Communication Technology Policy and Regulatory Framework
Organised by the United Nation Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) - Committee on Economic Cooperation and Integration (CECI)
Geneva, Switzerland

6-7 July 2009
6th Asialics International Conference "Linkages in Innovation System: Global and Local Perspectives"
Organised by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)
Hong Kong, China

6-17 July 2009
The III Barcelona Clusters Summer School
Organized by IESE Business School - University of Navarra
Barcelona, Spain

13-14 July 2009
12th International Conference on Technology Policy and Innovation (ICTPI)
Organized by the University of Porto and INESC Porto with the support of UTEN Portugal (University Technology Enterprise Network) and in cooperation with the IC2 Institute of the University of Texas at Austin
Porto, Portugal

4-8 September 2009
10th International CINet Conference on Enhancing the Innovation Environment
Organised by the Continuous Innovation Network (CINet)
Brisbane, Australia

7-8 September 2009
Research and entrepreneurship in the knowledge-based economy
Organised by Cespri - Centre for Research on Innovation and Internationalization, Bocconi University
Milan, Italy

10-11 September 2009
4th European Conference on Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Organized by Academic Conferences International (ACI)
Antwerp, Belgium

16-18 September 2009
25th Anniversary Conference "Science Park's contribution to innovation systems: people, places, partnerships"
Organized by The United Kingdom Science Park Association (UKSPA) in partnership with International Association of Science Park (IASP)
Manchester, United Kingdom