ECRN Congress of European Chemical Regions – Reflecting HLG
The European Chemical Regions Network (ECRN) organises its annual Congress 2010 as a Follow-up event to the »High Level Group (HLG) of the Competitiveness of the European Chemicals Industry » which finished its work in 2009 with 39 recommendations for future actions in the field of chemicals. Aim of the Congress is to reflect on the state of the implementation of the recommendations from a regional perspective. The ECRN represents the interests of currently 21 European chemical regions from 9 different countries.
With this year’s Congress of the European Chemical Regions the European Chemical Regions Network (ECRN) wants to contribute a regional perspective to the ongoing discussions on the implementation of the final recommendations of the « High Level Group (HLG) of the Competitiveness of the European Chemicals Industry » which were published in the final report of the HLG in February 2009. In order to do so, relevant representatives from regional, national and European authorities, associations, industry and science from all over the European Union will discuss what are the results which followed after the HLG, in what ways the European chemical regions have so far contributed to the implementation of the HLG results and how they have been affected, and which perspectives still lie ahead for future regional actions. After the high-level opening panel, two thematic panels will focus on the topics chemical logistics and energy and feedstock as these are areas of special concern for the ECRN in 2010.
The “European Chemical Regions Network” (ECRN) consists out of public authorities from currently 21 European regions in 9 different countries with a high concentration of chemical sector businesses. The regions have successfully joint together in this association in order to improve competitiveness of their chemical industry sectors by commonly tackling challenges which accrue to EU regions and to improve the awareness of European policymakers concerning their specific interests and perspectives. It is for the first time that a sector-specific regional cooperation is taking place in this format: highly institutionalized and implemented as a permanent organization with a network secretariat in Brussels. Within a very short time the network has managed to become a highly efficient organization for its members and a recognized European stakeholder which was invited to participate as the representative of the regional interest in the European Commission-led HLG on the Competitiveness of the European Chemicals Industry. The ECRN got the official mandate to organize the first Follow-up conference to the HLG in April 2009.
The ECRN thus represents a highly innovative and successful form of cooperation among public authorities with a constantly growing number of members. The network warmly invites all interested regions or other stakeholders to get in touch with its Brussels-based Secretariat for further information on its activities and on the Congress.
