SEAS 2 Grow came to an end in February 2021. The project aimed at improving the framework conditions for innovation in Silver Economy (any economic activity targeting people of more than 60 years old) in order to develop sustainable solutions and products tailored to elderly needs. To reach this objective, first it was necessary to enable the different stakeholders from this sector to meet and work together, such as elderly, companies, health institutions and local authorities. Collaboration between these actors was needed to develop products that really fit the elderly and their caregivers needs.

SEAS 2 Grow strategically engaged in living-lab initiatives, rigorously testing groundbreaking products among a cohort of seniors in diverse settings (either at home or within healthcare institutions) to validate their use. Throughout the project's lifetime, it has developed an array of valuable tools. These instruments facilitate enhanced mutual comprehension between companies and health institutions, offering relevant advice to enterprises aspiring to enter the Silver Economy market across the four countries involved. Key accomplishments encompassed hosting needs-finding sessions in each country, conducting a comprehensive market study on Silver Economy structuration and prime opportunities, creating an Online Route to Market tool for personalized guidance on regulations and market pathways in each country, and formulating a Strategic Guide for success in developing, marketing, using, ordering, and/or purchasing innovative products and services. Additionally, SEAS 2 Grow provided Strategic Recommendations to improve efficiency for Silver Economy stakeholders and devised a comprehensive Strategic Action Plan for the international implementation of the Agetech Accelerator.

Finally, SEAS 2 Grow has also set up the cross-border Accelerator to enable companies to test their products from co-creation to business acceptability. Processes and methodology have been defined collectively by all partners: including a template for a registration form of companies, an evaluation criteria to select them and a methodology to test products. Additionally, 5 calls for projects have also been launched to select products to be tested with panels of elderly in the 4 countries through the Accelerator. Subsequently, 34 companies have been selected via those 5 calls for projects. As a result, experimentations have been carried out with elderly people at home or in health care institutions. The idea was to make all the stakeholders in the engineering chain work and innovate together.

After 4 years of cross-border cooperation within SEAS 2 Grow adventure, we have a better understanding of where we sit in terms of Silver Economy and the Age innovation ecosystem and workspace, and also, the challenges we are facing a global and European level and the potential that cross-border collaboration and co-creation has to help in the ageing innovation workspace. We really enjoyed being part of the growth of the Silver Economy sector, playing our part - hopefully – to help create products and ideas that will help people live longer happier, healthier lives in their own homes.