Hidrológiai Közlöny, 2017 (97. évfolyam)

2017 / 3. szám - MANAGING WATER QUALITY (ONGOING PROJECTS AND FUTURE CHALLENGES) - Kocsis-Kupper Zsuzsanna: Capitalization within Thematic Pole 4 Water Management

Capitalization within Thematic Pole 4 Water Management Zsuzsanna Kocsis-Kupper EUSDR Priority Area Water Quality, chief advisor Abstract The paper gives a short overview of the thematic capitalization strategy of the Danube Transnational Programme and its Water Management Thematic Pole in operation as of 2017. Keywords Danube Transnational Programme, water management, capitalization, Danube Strategy BACKGROUND The late South East Europe Programme 2007-2013 (SEE) designed a Thematic Capitalisation Strategy to streamline the process of creating synergies between 122 SEE trans­national partnerships, and capitalising on results of previ­ous initiatives. The SEE Capitalisation Strategy was for­mally launched close to the edge of the previous program­ming period, in June 2013 and it aimed to strengthen the links between projects working on similar topics (The­matic Poles), to enable projects to exploit and consolidate one another's achievements, and create a higher leverage effect (Southeast). THE DTP CAPITALIZATION STRATEGY AND ITS PROCESS At the end of 2016 the Danube Transnational Programme (DTP) initiated to start its Capitalisation Strategy right at the momentum of projects awarded funding in the first DTP Call commenced. Capitalization was launched on 25- 26 January 2017 in Budapest, with the first Call Lead Part­ner Seminar for the Lead Partners of all those 54 projects selected (httpl, http2, http3). The launch was attended and welcomed by the newly approved projects of the DTP and by the Priority Area Coordinators (PACs) of the EU Strat­egy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) as well. With this early start, the capitalization process would make it possi­ble for the projects and PACs to get to know each other’s work, establish professional links to cooperate and score better outcomes and results through peer learning, bench­marking. As the DTP announced, the DTP Capitalization Strategy would grow together with the projects, hand in hand, grasping important aspects, welcoming and inte­grating the projects from the future calls and working as “knowledge and inventory manager” (Interreg-Danube). The overall aim of DTP capitalization is therefore to coop­erate with each other most efficiently, to build synergy be­tween the DTP projects, as well as with other projects funded by other financial instruments; the latter meaning that capitalization is not limited to DTP projects only, but other projects are welcomed as well. The capitalization process is mutually beneficial for the selected projects, for the Programme, but also for the EUSDR stakeholders as well as all DTP Priority Axis and related Specific Objectives show direct linkages to the pil­lars of one or more EUSDR Priority Areas. In relation to the EUSDR, the DTP Joint Secretariat (JS) has created the different Thematic Poles (TP) based on the EUSDR Prior­ity Areas to reinforce the links between the Programme Hidrológiai Közlöny (Hungarian Journal of Hydrology) 2017. 97. évf. 3. sz. and the Strategy and foster the capitalisation opportuni­ties (Interreg-Danube). It is indeed efficient for the EUSDR as it could benefit of newly formed networks and collect information and valuable inputs from the ground. The objectives of DTP Capitalisation Strategy (Interreg-Danube) o To valorise and further build upon the knowledge resulting from projects working in a thematic field o To fill knowledge-gaps by linking actors with complementary thematic specialisation, experi­ences, methodological approaches or geograph­ical scope o To increase the visibility of the projects and the programme and to ensure their impact on the pol­icy making process at local, regional, national and European levels o To strengthen strategic thematic networks in the Programme area o To encourage the wider take-up of project out­comes from outside the DTP Programme area o To contribute to the design and/or implementa­tion of future transnational cooperation in the area. Target groups o DTP projects working on similar or complemen­tary topics o Beneficiaries of DTP project outputs o DTP stakeholders o DTP Programme bodies o EUSDR bodies and stakeholder o Projects and stakeholders outside the programme area, relevant to the identified thematic poles Activities The DTP Capitalisation Strategy provides the list of capitalisation activities which includes but not limited to: o Joint communication actions (e.g. newsletters, etc.) o Joint thematic meetings to exchange on projects' content and outputs o Joint thematic studies and policy recommenda­tions o Peer review or benchmarking of project outputs o Exchange visits between projects, if this enables cross- fertilisation and/or take-up of results o Joint dissemination activities such as joint (final) conferences addressing common stakeholders.

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