The European Assembly of SMEs in the Hungarian EU Presidency expresses solidarity with the victims in Valencia

Valencia, 20 November 2024 – As part of the European SME Week, the SME Assembly 2024 brought together international experts in Budapest yesterday to discuss the challenges and opportunities for the business sector in the face of climate change. Juanma Revuelta, CEO of the Finnova Foundation, participated in a panel discussion with leaders in innovation and sustainability.

The day began with an emotional tribute to the victims of natural disasters, including the recent floods that severely affected Valencia. José Vicente Morata, president of the Valencia Council of Chambers of Commerce, reported that the estimated reconstruction costs amount to 11 billion euros.

Minute of silence, André Meyer, SME Envoy Network DG GROW ; Hubert Gambs,Deputy General DirectorDG GROW; Bonifacio Porras, unit head in DG GROW; Juanma Revuelta CEO Finnova.

José Vicente Morata, president of the Valencian council of Chambers of Commerce

Startups as a technological solution to emergencies: preventing, fighting and rebuilding.

The round table, ‘Challenges and opportunities of extreme weather for SMEs’, featured Katarzyna Balucka-Debska (Climate-KIC) , Ferenc Sinkó (Generali Group) and Juanma Revuelta (Finnova). They analysed the role of startups and scaleups as providers of I+P solutions (innovation for public management).

It was explained that the development of strategies for monitoring, prevention and mitigation of extreme events must be increased, highlighting the relevance of SMEs as key agents in the ecological transition.

Juanma Revuelta underlined the urgency of these actions by presenting alarming data:

In Europe, more than 1,500 extreme weather events have been recorded in the last 100 years, most of them since the beginning of the 21st century.

Floods (674), storms (569) and extreme temperature events (278) top the list of most frequent disasters.
Drought events, although less common, have accounted for 48 recorded episodes.

“We offer the expertise of the Valencian-Belgian Foundation in the fight against natural disasters, an area in which we have worked through our participation in various international consortia in fire management and COVID. Thanks to these efforts, we have managed to mobilise a total funding of €33 million, allowing us to continue supporting key projects for climate resilience and emergency management.”

The Setoff training programme was brought to the table, that provides civil servants with innovative tools to manage disaster risks. https://setoff-project.eu/

Reference was also made to Interreg FIREPOCTEP+: Initiative focused on the prevention of forest fires and the fight against climate change. https://firepocteplus.eu/

These projects demonstrate how international collaboration and innovation can make a difference in preparing for climate challenges, strengthening the role of SMEs in building a more resilient and sustainable future.

In addition, future initiatives aimed at joining efforts and public-private partnerships were presented:

In an effort to comprehensively address the challenges presented by natural disasters and the transition to a more climate resilient economy, Finnova presented several future initiatives aimed at fostering innovation and strengthening public-private collaboration. These proposals aim to mobilise resources and establish strategic alliances to implement effective solutions to climate emergencies, support the growth of innovative startups and SMEs, and offer new opportunities to the regions most affected by extreme natural phenomena. Below are some of the main initiatives proposed to further these objectives.

Proposals to boost innovation in the fight against natural disasters

In collaboration with the Valencia Chamber of Commerce, the affected municipalities, the Provincial, Regional and National Government and with the intention of adding other entities, the Emergency Startup Europe Awards (SEUA) has been proposed in the categories of Floods and Fires. This initiative, supported by the European Commission’s Startup Europe, seeks to identify and support the best ideas to address climate emergencies.

During the forum, a call was made for new partners to collaborate in the joint launch of this programme. These agreements will boost innovative startups and SMEs that develop solutions to natural disasters such as fires and floods, strengthening their capacity to address the challenges of climate change.

Single Market for 100 innovative ideas

Following the methodology of the FU-TOURISM project, (Open call until January 31, where SMEs in the tourism sector can apply for 20 000-euro grants, including those dedicated to fostering climate resilience and post-emergency tourism initiatives, with Valencia and Poreč-Parenzo serving as the living labs).

The Commission has been urged to create a Single Market call, with the objective of supporting 100 innovative ideas in the field of prevention, control and regeneration of natural hazards.

European Civil Protection Forum 2025

It has been proposed to host the European Civil Protection Forum 2025 at the Valencia International Trade Fair (with the support of Valencia City Council, Valencia Chamber of Commerce, as well as regional and local councils of different Valencian municipalities) in March 2025.

Nextalent young people affected will be trained in Brussels

Thanks to the activation of the remnants of the Youth Guarantee programme and funds from the European Social Fund, in collaboration with PICE internationalisation of the Chamber of Valencia, we offer young people under 30 years old, graduates and unemployed from the affected municipalities, the opportunity to gain practical experience in Brussels, focused on the drafting of projects to obtain European funds and that through the return of talent contributes to the absorption of local funds.

Next Generation EU, Horinzon EU, Interreg, LIFE Funds

Finnova advocates for flexibility in the allocation of Next Generation EU funds, especially for affected areas. This flexibility would allow resources to be adapted more efficiently to the specific needs of the regions, promoting recovery and boosting projects that contribute to economic and social resilience in the most vulnerable areas.

INFORMATION ON THE PROGRAMMES MENTIONED ABOVE:

The SME Assembly is Europe’s most important annual event dedicated to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It is organised by the European Commission as part of the European SME Week, which aims to support and promote SMEs across Europe, highlighting their crucial role in the European economy.

The Startup Europe Awards (SEUA) is an initiative promoted by the European Commission, and implemented by the Finnova Foundation in collaboration with Startup Europe since 2016. It is an open innovation tool that allows companies to identify talented startups capable of solving today’s challenges in multiple areas. Our mission is to help entrepreneurs to be more efficient, smart and successful; as well as to facilitate their access to European funds through calls that fit their project (LIFE, COSME, H. Europe, EIC, etc.). These awards are an extremely useful tool to promote knowledge sharing, to add value to the entrepreneurship ecosystem, to solve local challenges with innovation and to help startups to grow and position themselves in the market.

CONTACT DETAILS

JUANMA REVUELTA/ 696324236

LOLA BORDÁS/619110266