RESEARCH AND EXTENSION INTERACTION IN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT CENTERS: PROPOSITION OF CRITERIA FOR PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION

Abstract

Universities have roles based on knowledge and learning. Furthermore, they can directly influence the adoption of innovations, constituting fundamental pieces for national and regional development. Aiming to consolidate the university’s role in regional development, the Regional Development Centers (CDR) program was proposed. The CDR is a project that aims to mobilize local actors in order to assemble governance structures and compose portfolios of projects that use scientific knowledge, from Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), with a focus on leveraging Brazilian regional development. The CDR initiative, in pilot phase, needs to be improved. The objective of this work is to propose measures of advance in the methodology of selection and implementation of the CDR, in the proposition of criteria for the regions of operation and for the definition of project portfolios. From this perspective, a methodology is proposed that analyzes data from the Census of the Directory of Research Groups (DGP) for the year 2016, in three dimensions and indicators. The main results show that the analysis of the research groups is an extremely relevant data source for the CDR, as it allows us to more accurately infer the potential of the projects in the region