The eighteen members of The Economic Board form a triple helix partnership comprising entrepreneurs, public authorities and the education sector. The Board meets every two months to discuss efforts to promote healthy and sustainable living in the Lifeport Arnhem-Nijmegen region.
The March board meeting took place at Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences (VHL), situated on the Larenstein Estate in Velp. Through education and research, VHL trains people to become ambitious professionals who make a difference in tackling the most pressing societal challenges around the world. A future-proof world requires changes that can be summarised in four transitions. Jan van Iersel, Chair of the Executive Board and also a member of The Economic Board, spoke about the transitions to which the most sustainable university of applied sciences in the Netherlands – together with the professional sector and the government – is making a significant contribution;
1) Climate change requires major adjustments,
2) Sustainable agriculture and food,
3) Living in harmony with water, and
4) Biodiversity and (animal) welfare in rural and urban areas.
Two key topics were discussed during the meeting: Smart Sustainability and the Financial Statements – The Economic Board’s 2023 Annual Report.
Smart sustainability
Strategist Smart Sustainability Jan Luijten gave an introduction to the Smart Sustainability cluster. There are several examples of initiatives that provide solutions to challenges in soil and water, climate adaptation, living environment, construction, circularity and especially at intersections of transitions, such as SoilValley, Via-T and the learning projects in the region. Jan van Iersel and Daniël Wigboldus emphasised the role knowledge institutions and knowledge campuses have in contributing to broad prosperity with sustainability issues. Board members engaged in a discussion on what role The Economic Board wants to play for sustainability. The broad prosperity has several indicators, which ones do we solve with the spear sectors energy, health and high-tech, and where is there still a need.
Financial statements and annual report 2023
Furthermore, the discussion of the 2023 annual report and financial statements provided an opportunity to review the activities and efforts of The Economic Board over the past year. The Annual Report provides a comprehensive overview of the activities, projects and programmes carried out by The Economic Board over the past year, to which it has contributed or for which it has taken the lead. These programmes, projects and activities are in line with The Economic Board’s 2020–2025 strategic plan and, together with other activities, are presented under the three established main themes, each comprising the five defined priorities:
1 Innovation, technology and entrepreneurship
Priority 1: Technology-market combinations for societal challenges
Challenge 2: Funding and support for SMEs, start-ups and scale-ups
2 Talent
Challenge 3 A balanced labour market
3 Regional prosperity and well-being
Challenge 4: A driving force for broad prosperity
Challenge 5: Tools for a public-private ecosystem
