Research collaboration for regional development on Gotland

Do you as a researcher want to collaborate more with the local business community on Gotland? Do you want the chance to apply for funding to collaborate in feasibility studies with Gotland companies and organisations? This is your chance: the project that Region Gotland, Uppsala University and Tillväxt Gotland are running together during the years 2024-2027 which aims to strengthening the business community; increase the research and development capacity; and contribute to sustainable development on Gotland.

What is FRUGO?

Research collaboration for regional development on Gotland (Forskningssamverkan för regional utveckling på Gotland - FRUGO) is a triple helix project, where stakeholders from business, academia and the public sector collaborate to jointly increase Gotland's capacity for research and development.

Central to the project is also exploring and optimising the forms of research collaboration in a triple helix format. The collaboration side of the project include everything from finding the best way to identify the challenges of the companies and organisations, to preparation and decision-making phases as well as forms for disseminating the results of the feasibility studies and the results of the collaboration.

All three project partners, i.e. Region Gotland, Uppsala University and Tillväxt Gotland, have different inputs and driving forces for this project.

• As far as it goes for the local business community the project want to identify challenges they struggle with so that these challenges can be addressed in collaboration with researchers providing support and help increasing the conditions for new knowledge, resilience, innovation and sustainable business development.
• For academia and researchers, the practical collaboration with Gotland's businesses and organisations can provide new insights, knowledge and data that strengthen research, as well as opportunities to build networks and find long-term partners who can ultimately apply for external research funds together.
• For the public sector, research collaboration is an important part of building increased development capacity both in the organisation and in Gotland’s community - a contribution to the regional development strategy (Our Gotland 2040) and the vision of a creative island with room for all aspects of life.
  

What happens in the project?

In this project we will actively seek out small and medium-sized companies on Gotland to find the challenges of their operations. The project will invite you to a number of activities to identify possible challenges in the business community and within the Gotland Region. This involves company visits, interviews, seminars and workshops.

In the next step, we will match the challenges with suitable researchers at Uppsala University who will have the chance to apply for feasibility study funding together with the company/organisation (the funding goes to the researchers).

Expected results

The project is expected to result in increased capacity for research collaboration for the Gotland business community, Uppsala University and the Gotland Region.

The project is also expected to strengthen the partners' own organisations and contribute to increased capacity for research and development on Gotland, increased attractiveness and strengthened skills supply.

The value of jointly carrying out several research feasibility studies can also lead to continued in-depth collaboration and external funding can be sought for larger research projects.

Project outcome

The project aims to strengthen small and medium-sized Gotland companies through increased collaboration with academia and the public sector, where new knowledge contributes to resilience and sustainable development. The project establishes a working model that strengthens the ability of the business community, Uppsala University and Region Gotland to collaborate in research projects and create conditions for new research initiatives, which is central to strengthening research and development in Gotland's business community.