Under the motto “Building Bridges for a Sustainable Future.”, the 14th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) will take place from 5th to 6th November 2025 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The event will bring together high-level representatives from the European Union, national governments, regional and local authorities, and other stakeholders to discuss the EUSDR’s progress and shape the Strategy’s future.
Priority Area 8 will be particularly active at this year’s Forum, organising or contributing to 8 different events that highlight the engagement of actors in the field of Competitiveness of enterprises in the region.
The involvement of PA8 Stakeholders include:
- Events open to all participants –
- Workshop on Lighthouse Initiatives: Supply Chains & Finance – 5 Nov, 15:30, Room Neretva, organised by Steinbeis Europa Zentrum.
- As part of the study Lighthouse Projects in the Danube Region’ in the fields of Supply Chains and Finance, the Austrian Supply Chain Intelligence Institute and the Horizon project RETHINK-GSC will be presented.
- Digitalisation: Boost for Competitiveness, Sustainability and Growth – 6 Nov, 09:30, Room Holiday
- Two of the speakers are Balázs Barta, the CEO of the Pannon Business Network in Hungary and coordinator of the PA8 Working Group on Artificial Intelligence, and Claus Hoffmann, the CEO of the Center for Digitisation in the Böblingen district and coordinator of the PA8 Working Group on the Digital Danube.
- Workshop on Lighthouse Initiatives: Green Tech, Circular Economy & Bioeconomy – 6 Nov, 09:30, Room Neretva, organised by Steinbeis Europa Zentrum and the Slovenian Chamber of Industry and Commerce
As a highlight the future project CCU Bio BW will be presented. Carbon-containing emissions are generated during the production of cement, wine and beer, thermal treatment of municipal waste, and steel production. Their recovery is the focus of the Innovation Hub CCU BIO project.
Biotechnological and biohybrid processes can convert these emissions into high-quality products, establishing sustainable value chains.
- Public Conference on the PA 8 DECIDE Project – 6 Nov, 11:30, Room Una
The project partners will present their Interreg DRP project DECIDE – ‘Digital Services for the Circular Economy: A Toolkit for Regional Developers and SMEs’. The DECIDE solution provides a comprehensive toolbox of digital services and methods, offering access to best practice examples from various sectors, as well as training programmes to build capacity and knowledge. By promoting the adoption of circular economy business models (CEBMs), DECIDE ensures that sustainable practices become the norm in the Danube region. The DECIDE Public Conference will present initial results and provide an opportunity for knowledge exchange and discussion with the DECIDE project team led by Severine Dommer.
On Invitation only are further four events like the DRP Interreg Project DECIDE Meeting, the Working Group on Circular Economy + Bioeconomy led by Grit Ackermann and Goran M. Vasić, the Danube Transfer Centre Network Ceremony led by Daniela Chiran and Tania Ana CIMESA + PA 8 Steering Group Meeting.
With this broad range of activities, PA8 showcases how cooperation across the Danube Region can enhance competitiveness + sustainability.
Registration is now open! The draft agenda and registration link can be viewed here: https://lnkd.in/eB3M_yRe
