InnoPolis to Present BIO-DISTRICT APP at the 64th FITCE European Congress
12 May 2026BIO-DISTRICT APP presented at the 64th FITCE European Congress
On 14 May 2026, InnoPolis had the honour of participating in the 64th FITCE European Congress, hosted at the University of Patras Conference Centre. The event, organised jointly by FITCE Europe and FITCE Hellas, brought together telecommunications professionals, researchers, and digital innovation practitioners from across the continent.
We extend our sincere gratitude to the organising committee and, in particular, to Dr. Thanasis Ioannou, Physicist, Electrical Engineer and Computer Technologist, and member of the Scientific Committee of the 64th FITCE Congress, for his kind invitation and for making it possible for InnoPolis to contribute to such a distinguished professional forum.
“A Bio-District is a defined territory where farmers, citizens, public authorities, and tourism and food operators sign a formal agreement to manage local resources according to organic principles.”
The BIO-DISTRICT APP Project
The presentation, delivered by Aikaterini Sotiropoulou, focused on the BIO-DISTRICT APP project — a 24-month cross-border initiative co-funded by the European Union under the Interreg VI-A Greece–Italy 2021–2027 programme (Priority 1: Enhanced cooperation, smarter GR-IT area). The project runs from June 2025 to June 2027 and targets two pilot territories: the Biodistretto delle Lame in Puglia, Italy, and the Municipality of Ancient Olympia in Western Greece.
BIO-DISTRICT APP addresses a set of interconnected challenges confronting rural Europe: climate vulnerability and soil degradation threatening organic farming sustainability; declining rural incomes and fragmented markets; governance gaps in multi-actor, cross-border coordination; and a persistent digital divide that has left the organic agriculture sector behind in the broader digital transformation of the economy.
Project at a Glance
- Programme: Interreg VI-A Greece–Italy 2021–2027
- Duration: 24 months — June 2025 to June 2027
- Target areas: Puglia (IT) & Western Greece (GR)
- Partners: 6 organisations across Greece and Italy
- Platform: Trilingual digital platform (Greek / Italian / English)
- Living Labs: 2 — one in Puglia, one in Ancient Olympia
A Partnership Built for Impact
The project brings together six complementary organisations with distinct roles and expertise across both countries:
- CIHEAM Bari (Italy — Lead Beneficiary)
- Bio-Distretto delle Lame (Italy)
- ARIF Puglia (Italy)
- AGRIFOODWest (Greece)
- InnoPolis (Greece)
- Municipality of Ancient Olympia (Greece)
Living Labs: Co-Design at the Heart of the Project
A defining feature of the BIO-DISTRICT APP methodology is its commitment to the Living Lab model — open-innovation ecosystems that integrate research and practice in real-world settings, through a public-private-people partnership approach. Rather than designing digital tools in isolation and deploying them to passive recipients, the project engages farmers, local authorities, civil society organisations, and end users directly in a structured five-stage co-design process: Needs Assessment, Co-Design Sessions, Prototyping, Testing, and Pilot Validation.
The Western Greece Living Lab, coordinated by InnoPolis in partnership with AGRIFOODWest and the Municipality of Ancient Olympia, focuses on digital tools for local organic producers and agri-tourism operators. The Puglia Living Lab, led by CIHEAM Bari and the Biodistretto delle Lame, addresses organic farm data management, certification processes, and market-access services.
The Integrated Digital Platform
All insights emerging from the Living Labs feed directly into the development of a common cross-border digital platform, available in three languages — Greek, Italian, and English. The platform is designed to be scalable and adaptable beyond the two pilot regions, providing innovative services to the organic agriculture sector and offering a replicable model for other bio-districts across Europe.
InnoPolis: Our Role and Contribution
InnoPolis — Centre for Innovation and Culture is a Greek non-profit organisation with deep expertise in European-funded projects, Living Lab methodology, digital transformation, and capacity building in rural communities. Within BIO-DISTRICT APP, InnoPolis holds two key responsibilities:
WP2 Lead — Communication, Visibility & Dissemination
InnoPolis leads all communication and dissemination activities across the project, ensuring visibility of results and broad stakeholder outreach at national and European levels.
Western Greece Living Lab Coordinator
InnoPolis coordinates participatory co-design workshops in Ancient Olympia, building on prior experience from the ORGANIC ECOSYSTEM project (ENI CBC 2014–2020), as well as ongoing synergies with Horizon Europe’s CODECS project, the GRASS CEILING initiative (CIHEAM), and the CERV Magna Graecia programme.
Expected Results and Long-Term Vision
By the close of the project in June 2027, BIO-DISTRICT APP is expected to have delivered two fully operational Living Labs, a cross-border digital platform, three pilot actions, and a Memorandum of Understanding between partners ensuring the platform’s long-term sustainability.
Roadmap
Now · 2025–2027 — Living Lab Phase
Co-design, platform development, pilot testing in GR & IT, MoU signing.
Short-Term — Wider Adoption
Platform open to other regions, ERDF/ESF follow-up proposals, policy engagement.
Long-Term Vision — Mediterranean Network
National agri-digital integration, Mediterranean bio-district network, open-source publication.
The presentation at FITCE 2026 was an important opportunity to connect the BIO-DISTRICT APP project with the wider European digital and telecommunications innovation community — and to explore how digital infrastructure and cross-border cooperation can serve not only the technology sector, but also the rural communities and sustainable food systems that are central to Europe’s green and digital transition.
We look forward to continued dialogue, collaboration, and knowledge exchange with all interested parties. If you are working in sustainable agriculture, rural digital innovation, bio-district governance, or European project development, we warmly invite you to get in touch.
Aikaterini Sotiropoulou
President, InnoPolis — Centre for Innovation & Culture
Speaker, 64th FITCE European Congress · Patras, May 2026
The BIO-DISTRICT APP project is co-funded by the European Union under the Interreg VI-A Greece–Italy 2021–2027 programme. The views and opinions expressed are those of InnoPolis and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Managing Authority.
