SMART ISLANDS
A model conductive to growth, employment and sustainable development
PUBLIC HEARING

12 dECEMBER 2014 • 9.00 a.m. > 1 p.m. • Chania, Crete

Centre of Mediterranean Architecture, Defkalionos Street, Venetian Port of Chania, Crete

Programme

Interpretation provided
from and into English, French, Dutch, Greek and Spanish

9.00 – 9.30 Registration and welcome coffee

9.30 – 10.00 Opening remarks

George Benetos, President of Insuleur

Yannis Margaronis, President of the Chania Chamber of commerce

Stavros Arnaoutakis, President of the Regional Council of Creta

Henri Malosse, President of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)

10.00 – 11.15 Session 1: The role of smart islands as a tool to foster economic growth and employment

This session will focus on the main drivers and public policy options on how to address the specific problems and opportunities of European islands, and their transformation into "smart islands", to ensure that they could be conducive to growth and employment.

Debate with:

Godfrey Baldacchino, University of Malta

Panos Corogiannakis, Project Manager, ISLE-PACT project

Gonzalo Pierrenavieja, Technological Institute of the Canary Islands

Moderator: Carlos Alberto Pereira Martins, EESC member

11.15 – 12.45 Session 2: Smart islands in practice

In this session representatives of local authorities will debate the main challenges in implementing the smart islands concept, and will present best practices applied in their regions.

Debate with:

Antoine Mondoloni, President of the Regional Chamber of Commerce (CCI) of Corsica

Yannis Roussos, President of Cyclades Chambers of Commerce and Industry

Antonio Gómez, Vice-president of the Balearic government

Eleftherios Kechagioglou, President of Hellenic Small Islands Network and Board Member of European Small Islands Federation

Mathias Bini, Head of economic department, spatial planning and outermost regions at the Regional CCI of Guadeloupe Islands

Moderator: Anna Maria Darmanin, EESC member and rapporteur of the Study Group on Smart islands

12.45 - 13 Closing remarks

Jan Simons, EESC member and president of the study group on Smart islands

13 – 14.30 Networking lunch

Interpretation provided
from and into English, French, Dutch, Greek and Spanish

Interpretation provided
from and into English, French, Dutch, Greek and Spanish