ASSOCIATION "NETWORK FOR INNOVATIVE DEVELOPMENT": FUNCTION AND SIGNIFICANCE FOR ENHANCING UNIVERSITY-INDUSTRY COOPERATION

Network for Innovative Development, which will provide a wide range of services for supporting innovation in the region, is one of the key outputs of the IPA cross-border project between Hungary and Serbia, carried out under the title "Cross-border Network of Innovative Development and Knowledge Transfer". Having worked on the project for fourteen months, the project partners opted to organise an innovation network, which was formed and formally established by Consortium Agreement on July 20, 2011. The Consortium is an open one, and can be freely joined by organisations of Triple Helix innovation model, from the sectors of university, industry and government. In addition to these, the network also comprises intermediaries, NGOs and associations. As well as organisations from the two national networks of Serbia and Hungary, the innovation network can also be joined by organisations characterised by particular regional interest in networking, rather than geographic location. The article presents the results of the IPA cross-border project, more specifically, the segment of modelling network for innovative development, providing detailed presentations of entities and functions of the formed association, the manner and methods of its functioning, and its significance for enhancing university-industry cooperation in innovative development.