The study focused on knowledge valorisation, defined as “the process of creating social and economic value from knowledge,” encompassing the transformation of data, know-how, and research results into sustainable products, services, solutions, and knowledge-based policies. This process contributed to societal well-being through incremental and disruptive innovation, addressing challenges such as climate change, inequalities, and digital transformation impact.
Lessons were drawn from a pool of 60 cases selected based on geographic coverage, funding programme diversity, and engagement model variety. These cases involved citizens in R&I processes to increase the social and economic value of generated knowledge. They spanned at least 17 Member States and included ten practices outside the EU, with at most 50% from Horizon 2020 or Horizon Europe projects. Drawing from in-depth qualitative and quantitative analysis, the study identified actions to improve the design and implementation of participatory methods in R&I processes for knowledge valorisation. It explored the potential of participatory approaches for innovation capacity, analysed a diverse sample of best practices, identified drivers empowering participatory approaches, and highlighted challenges and limitations.
The project provided an analysis of citizen engagement for knowledge valorisation practices, drawing on 60 selected case studies from 37 countries across the EU and internationally. The final report described the benefits of participatory processes and explored key elements for the successful valorisation of knowledge and research results with the engagement of citizens. Based on the evidence, it provided possible action points for research and innovation actors for effective participatory practices for knowledge valorisation. The analysis highlighted a gap in employing a clearly defined measurement framework to assess the efficacy of participatory processes in value creation and provided an evaluation framework including key performance indicators that could serve as a tool for researchers and practitioners.