A quick question…what exactly is innovation?

"The term innovation has no easy definition." John Smith, deputy secretary-general of the European University Association (EUA), explains a first fundamental problem in the fight to make Europe more innovative.

"Everyone today is talking about innovation, but there is very little clarification."

Innovation can mean one thing for politicians, another for industry, and yet another for universities and researchers. Different countries and regions in Europe also often have different ideas about what innovation means, says Smith. Even universities around the 27 member states struggle to agree.

This lack of a common vision makes it difficult for both enterprise and research organisations to be truly innovative, says Smith.

The EUA has worked with three industry and research groups to develop a ‘Responsible Partnering Initiative’ to address the problem. Responsible Partnering sets out guidelines for research organisations and businesses hoping to work together.

It was welcomed two years ago by Günter Verheugen, European commissioner for enterprise, who had already expressed concern that: "Europe is still relatively weak in translating the results of research into innovative products and services."

Last month a European Commission communication on ‘embracing open innovation’ called on member states to support an "entrepreneurial mindset", through projects including Responsible Partnering.

But Smith says the lack of co-ordination is a problem extending further than enterprise-university thinking.

Even the European framework programmes for research funding do not always make the most of EU expertise, he says, with FP-funded researchers in one area sometimes unaware that another project funded by the programme touches similar areas. "A lot is being lost because of a lack of linkage across the framework programme," according to Smith.

He welcomes the new European Research Council (ERC) as a way of bringing together university researchers across Europe, at the same time as funding basic research and encouraging experts to stay in Europe.

He says much clearer links should be made between FP funds and EU regional funding, as a further way to take research and innovation out of their specialist boxes.

Research and innovation have both been made funding priorities for the EU’s €308bn budget for structural funds in 2007-13.

"The term innovation has no easy definition." John Smith, deputy secretary-general of the European University Association (EUA), explains a first fundamental problem in the fight to make Europe more innovative.