Companies4Tomorrow provided an insightful platform for dialogue among policy makers, academia, business support organisations, and innovation stakeholders within the “Digitalizing the Mediterranean: challenges and opportunities” event.
The meeting, hosted by Unioncamere Calabria, in Lamezia Terme on 14–15 May 2026, was structured in two sessions. The sessions featured distinguished speakers from Greece and Italy, including Pietro Alfredo Falbo (President of Unioncamere Calabria), Spiros Sirmakessis (Lead Partner from the University of Peloponnese), Gianfranco Gadaleta (Joint Secretariat Coordinator), Nicola Mayerà (Calabria Region), Takis Papadopoulos (Deputy Regional Governor for Entrepreneurship, Research and Innovation of the Region of Western Greece), Maristella Mantuano (Communication Officer of the Joint Secretariat) and Elena Giannopoulou (Project Officer of the C4T project, contributed with insights on project implementation and cooperation opportunities).
The first day of the meeting opened with a public session focused on strengthening cross-border synergies and enlarging the cooperation ecosystem supporting SMEs and Industry 4.0 innovation. The session addressed the capitalization of project results and the development of practical instruments capable of supporting the sustainable, smart, and economic digital transformation of SMEs through cooperation between enterprises, universities, and research centres.
Following the public event and networking activities, the meeting continued with the second session “Stakeholder Meeting: Enlarging Cooperation Networks”, dedicated to strengthening collaboration between enterprises, universities, chambers of commerce, and research institutions operating in Italy and Greece. The stakeholder meeting identified concrete opportunities for expanding digital cooperation frameworks and developing future initiatives capable of supporting innovation ecosystems, workforce development, and technology transfer in the Mediterranean area. Discussions focused on improving the interaction between research institutions and business needs, enhancing digital capacities among SMEs, and generating new cross-border project opportunities. The stakeholder session gathered Unioncamere Calabria, business associations, the University of Calabria, the University Magna Graecia of Catanzaro, the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria and research centres.
Through initiatives such as the C4T project, Greece and Italy continue to strengthen their cooperation in fostering digital innovation capacities, supporting SMEs, and building sustainable cross-border ecosystems capable of addressing future technological and economic challenges.
