When the German version of I.O. went online on June 4, 2018, a platform was born that focuses on everything around technical and technological innovations. Its goal is not only to gather and publish news in these fields but, ideally, also contribute to new national and international collaborations. Experts already applaud I.O., as Jürgen K. Enninger, head of the “Kompetenzteam Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft der Landeshauptstadt München” (team of experts on culture and creative businesses of the city of Munich)
What do you consider the essential relevance of I.O.?
“It is crucial that there is such a platform because it goes one step further than mere talk about business contacts between Bavaria and the Netherlands; it makes them easy to grasp. It can help to initiate exchange in respect of content and even lead to real connections that support you, help you, and unveil things that are already happening.”
Why is a collaboration between Germany and the Netherlands so important?
“Of course, we focus mostly on the collaboration between the Amsterdam/Utrecht region and the Munich metropolitan area, but as a cultural and creative business support organization we are partners for various reasons. The benchmarks, i.e., the economic performance within the creative business, are about the same in Bavaria and the Netherlands. The relevance of the Amsterdam/Utrecht region and the Munich metropolitan area in culture and creative business is similar, employment is similar, sales are similar, even the relevance of individual sub-segments within the creative business is similar. All of that makes us natural partners in the development of this subject. In the context of European collaboration, the primary focus lies on the exchange of experience, on learning from projects. Both regions are very innovative, international creative locations that can benefit from each other. Therefore it is very important to reach an exchange between administration, universities, and businesses to develop all of this further.”
How big is the chance of a real collaboration on new projects in your view?
“A platform like this always presents the possibility to discover new projects, and we are already working on some, but there is nothing I’d like more than see more new projects come to pass through this platform. Our mutual interests are the basis for cooperation. Without the already existing motivation for collaboration and the fertile ground, it would be extremely difficult to develop a promising collaboration. With our colleagues in Amsterdam/Utrecht, we have developed the so-called Creative-Embassy-Program and thereby discovered that there are already several shared projects, which only became visible by the Creative-Embassy-Program.”
Picture Jacqueline Krause-Burberg