When Jose Manuel Barroso, the President of the European Comission presented the Manifesto for Creativity he strongly defended the concept of a “New Platform of Innovation and Creativity” for the future of Europe. That´s  a new collaborative order between the different actors, with the strategic challenge of reinforcing the central competitive ences of society and qualifying them as the unique ways of creation of value and modernity. Europe is facing a unique opportunity within this new concept. The message is clear  - the new time that all of us want for Europe in the future demands a strong commitment with Innovation and Creativity as the effective enablers of change.
 The launching and implementation of this “New Platform for Innovation and Creativity”  will require a strong Partnership Contract between all the actors (States, Universities, Companies, Civil Society), in order to build a real Strategy of Confidence in the execution of the different actions that are associated with this Agenda of Change. The focus on Innovation and Creativity as the drivers of creating added value with international dissemination is a unique challenge that may be the answer to a new way of interaction between those who have the responsibility of thinking and those that have the responsibility of producing goods and services. This is the main reason for the opportunity of the Platform.
 The “New Platform for Innovation and Creativity” will also require an active entrepreneurial culture and attitude -  “social active classes” in Europe have most of the times  an effective negative attitude towards the financial risk, the focus on innovation and the share of a culture of positive dynamic. We need Europe to have a new challenge. Europe must be able to be the real Platform of a more Entrepreneurial Society, centered in new areas of knowledge and new sectors of value. In the Platform, the key words will be Co-creation, Coopetition and Open Innovation. To promote a dynamic and active creation process involving each citizen is the big challenge for the next years in Europe. This is the challenge that Jose Manuel Barroso spoke about.
 The future is already today. Europe must have the right answers in a more and more complex global world. The  “New Platform for Innovation and Creativity” must be the most complete example of positive attitude towards this future. The Talents must be the new competitive advantage of the Platform, pushed by the “enablers” of  Modernity, Added Value and Excellence. A very clear idea that suits the big challenge that our society really faces and that requires new answers for different questions. The act of global  participation in such a demanding society is an exercise of commitment hbetween the individual creativity and the collective cooperation. This is the key for the success of our Platform.
Innovation and Creativity are the answers that Europe must give to the difficult answers of our time. They are the “drivers of change” for  Europe and civil society must be able to understand this new challenge and address effective answers to the different stakeholders of the system. The challenge of the “New Platform for Innovation and Creativity ”  is in a large sense the challenge of Europe. The challenge of Europe is the challenge of its people and institutions. It is, in a word, our challenge.
Francisco Jaime Quesado is the General Manager of the Innovation and Knowledge Society in Portugal, a public agency with the mission of coordinating the policies for Information Society and mobilizing it through dissemination, qualification and research activities. It operates within the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education