Brussels, 17/02/2014 (Agence Europe) - On 14 February, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) launched a selection process to set up two new Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), with partners from higher education, research and business and other top class organisations. This is the first step in our expansion of the EIT, with five new KICs planned over the next seven years.
One KIC will focus on innovation for healthy living and active ageing and the other on raw materials. The application process will be open until 10 September. An independent evaluation of the proposals will be made, guided by specific selection criteria. There are currently three KICs, focusing on climate change, ICT and sustainable energy respectively. They have provided entrepreneurship training for more than 1,000 students and contributed to the creation of more than 100 start-ups. Around 90 new products, services or processes have been launched and more than 400 business ideas are currently being incubated within the KICs. (IL/transl.fl)