The European Commission adopted on October 22nd 2008 a Decision on setting up a European Cluster Policy Group with the aim to explore how to better assist Member States in supporting the emergence of more world-class clusters in the EU. Following a call for applications, the members of the Group have now been appointed.

In accordance with Commission Decision 2008/824/EC of October 22nd 2008 setting up a European Cluster Policy Group and the call for applications published on the Internet site of DG Enterprise and Industry and in the Official Journal of the European Union, the European Commission has now published the list of the members of the group of experts appointed in a personal capacity for a 18 month mandate.

The European Cluster Policy Group will start its work in April 2009 with an 18-month term. It will meet 4 times and conduct 2 study visits in order to identify best available practice in support of world-class clusters.

Its tasks will be to make recommendations on how to better design cluster policies in the Community, to assess international trends in cluster development and identify future challenges for cluster policies in response to globalisation, to explore tools for removing existing barriers to transnational cluster cooperation, and to analyse complementaries between the main Community level policies and financial instruments that support clusters.

European Cluster Policy Group Members List

• Mr Norbert BUZÁS
• Mr Constantin CHRISTOFIDIS
• Mr Maciej DZIERZANOWSKI
• Mr Juan Manuel ESTEBAN
• Mr Libor FRIEDEL
• Mr Christian KETELS
• Mr Pierre LAFFITTE
• Mr Finn Carsten LAURITZEN
• Mr Bruno LINDORFER
• Mr Gerd MEIER ZU KÖCKER
• Ms Charlotta MELLANDER
• Mr Andrea MOLTRASIO
• Mr Howard NEWBY
• Ms Tea Terezija PETRIN
• Mr Neville REYNER
• Mr Antoni SUBIRA CLAUS
• Mr Jean-Marc THOMAS
• Mr Rene TÖNNISSON
• Mr Antti Taneli VALLE
• Mr Willem Jans ZWALVE