24 Sep 2026
EURASHE responds to EC proposal for European Innovation Act
EURASHE, the European Association for Applied Sciences in Higher Education, published a reaction to the European Commission's proposal for a European Innovation Act (EIA), which the association regards as a step in the right direction, but criticises for overlooking a place-based approach and the role of HEIs as ecosystem orchestrators.
In more detail, EURASHE welcomes the EIA's recognition of the need to strengthen Europe’s innovation ecosystems and its efforts to lift barriers that continue to hinder the uptake and scaling of innovation across Member States. The association regards the focus on public procurement, regulatory experimentation and improved framework conditions as an important step in the right direction, but would have liked to see the proposal more ambitious in fully harnessing Europe’s territorial diversity and knowledge base.
In particular, EURASHE misses a stronger place-based approach to innovation in the EIA, a more explicit recognition of regional innovation actors and the specific challenges faced by developing and transitioning regions. EURASHE calls for better alignment between European, national and regional innovation policies, in particular public procurement strategies, as well as measures to bridge innovation gaps, to remain a priority in the implementation phase.
Furthermore, EURASHE regrets the limited recognition of higher education institutions (HEI) as key drivers of innovation. The association stresses the HEIs' unique role in connecting research, education, skills development and societal engagement, and as "essential orchestrators of R&I ecosystems". According to EURASHE, a stronger focus on universities as innovation partners would have enhanced the Act’s capacity to support knowledge valorisation, upscaling and the regional innovation ecosystem as a whole. The association therefore calls on policymakers to better integrate HEIs in EIA implementation.
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