Let’s make it happen, here in Amsterdam!

So, let’s wait until something happens…?

No, of course not. Here in Amsterdam we very much understand that research leads to innovation. And innovation must be implemented. And implementation must be financed. And finance may lead to business. Easy enough, one might think: let research talk to business: problem solved.

Let’s wait again…? Will something happen?

No, We don’t think so. In order to succeed, all the steps, from research to business, have to be organised and often facilitated. And although Life Sciences and Biomedical Sciences are global, one primarily needs to organise this on a regional scale, close to the source….the universities that deliver the research results. Why? Because one needs more expertise than only research and business to succeed. One needs top research and top researchers, for sure. One also needs universities and institutions that understand that intellectual property needs to be protected. One needs technology transfer offices capable of valorising the protected IP and setting up new companies. One also needs existing companies that absorb research results and IP. One needs support companies that know all about structuring companies, financing them and build patent portfolios. One needs facilities to host new and innovative companies. And one needs local and regional authorities with guts who will tell the world: ‘Amsterdam has it all’. So, it is not just: be excellent in one thing and ‘it will happen’. No, you need it all: every link in this chain is important and cannot be surpassed.

The ‘one has it all’ is not necessarily an advantage. We might have so much that ‘organising it ‘ might be ‘a tough job’, and tougher than one might think. In all regional collaborations we know, the parties have to get acquainted, have to learn about each other’s expertise and then start to collaborate. And this works only when there is a basis of trust en mutual benefit. Unfortunately, this takes time. So let’s wait until that happens?

No, Amsterdam, let’s not wait, let’s make it happen! The Amsterdam universities and research institutes are already collaborating, e.g. in the field of technology transfer, in an initiative called ‘I amstarter’. We are not ready, we have just started. The way it works is ‘start doing it’: start to see each other on a regular basis, start to exchange ideas, start to work together and it will happen. But we cannot do it alone, as stated above. We need the Amsterdam BioMed Cluster to ‘organise the region’ and bring all stakeholders together: linking it together to a succesful chain. Participation in Amsterdam BioMed Cluster is free. Please join us in the cluster and let’s make it happen.

Ward Mosmuller & Ada Kruisbeek