2023 edition of the European Week of Regions and Cities

The European Week of Regions and Cities 2023 is the biggest annual Brussels-based event dedicated to cohesion policy bringing together regions and cities from all over Europe, including politicians, administrators, experts and academics.

This year’s edition will provide an opportunity to discuss about innovation in transitionary times.

It will contribute to the debate on the future of regional and urban policy, underlining the key narrative of cohesion as a fundamental EU value.

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission (DG EMPL) will be present with the following sessions:

An innovative approach towards youth inclusion: the ALMA initiative getting off the ground?      

Timing: 10/10/2022 9:30-10:30

ALMA (Aim, Learn, Master, and Achieve) is a social inclusion initiative which supports mobility across the EU for the most vulnerable young people to help them integrate into society and the labour market of their country of origin. This workshop will focus on the innovative approach promoted by the ALMA initiative, which combines elements of training, coaching, working and transnational mobility. The speakers will be project operators, who will share insights on how they plan to implement ALMA.

Reinforcing long-term care: tapping into the opportunities of innovation

Timing: 10/10/2022 10:30-11:30

The workshop will explore lessons learnt and potential for upscaling EU-funded projects on social innovation in long-term care. Many people in need of long-term care cannot get it, because services are unavailable, unaffordable or of poor quality. The challenge will deepen, as long-term care needs rise with population ageing, while the number of people able and willing to provide care shrinks. Innovation can help address the care challenge.

Launch of the ESF+ Social Innovation+ initiative

Timing: 10/10/2022 10:30-10:45

The aim of the session is to launch the ESF+ Social Innovation+ initiative, raise the visibility of the value that the initiative will create and highlight opportunities for social innovation stakeholders. The new initiative aims to facilitate and boost the transfer and upscaling of innovative solutions and tools across the EU by sharing knowledge and expertise and through transnational networking and cooperation in the field of employment, education, skills and social inclusion.

Discover the Social Economy Gateway

Timing: 10/10/2022 14:30-14:45

This session introduces the Social Economy Gateway launched on 13 June 2023. It provides information on EU funding programmes, EU policy, guidance documents and studies, country pages with country specific information and other resources for and about the social economy. The website makes it easier for public authorities and social economy organisations to navigate funding opportunities and to find support for building thriving social economy ecosystems.

Outermost regions: promoting skills and learning mobility as an opportunity for the development

Timing: 10/10/2022 16:30-17:30

The situation of people in the outermost regions and the divergence of social opportunity between these regions and continental Europe is a cause for concern. Guiding questions: How can we promote more effective and inclusive investment in training and professional development? How can we support the skills development and retraining of workers, including in the context of the green and digital transitions? How can we nurture successful digital education and a supply of digital skills?

Invest in skills in regions: the European Year of Skills to boost upskilling and reskilling

Timing: stand open from 10/10 to 12/10

This stand will present the European Year of Skills. It aims, among other objectives, to foster the implementation and delivery of regional initiatives on the ground. It will present the actions that the EU has already implemented to strengthen reskilling and upskilling, and in particular their regional dimension. The stand will also be an opportunity to reflect on how to integrate more people into the labour market, especially specific groups such as people living in remote areas.