February 18, 2021.

On February 17, 2021 a foresight-session "Smart Specialization: Municipal Trends" was held at the Boiling Point of SSEU.

The format of the virtual hall allowed the organizers of the foresight session - professors of the Department of Regional Economics and Management and the Department of World Economy to keep an active dialogue with numerous participants - graduate students and undergraduate students of SSEU.

At the event, the speakers made presentations on the issue: Professor Elena Koroleva emphasized the importance of searching for "smart specializations" in the process of strategic planning of municipal development in the Samara region; Professor Galina Khmeleva revealed the theoretical and methodological basis for the regional strategies of "smart specialization"; Associate Professor Marina Kurnikova presented the theoretical and methodological basis for the development of "smart specialization". Kurnikova Marina  held master class on European tools for monitoring regional strategies for "smart specialization".

The key presenter of the discussion was Svetlana Asanova, postgraduate student of the Department of Regional Economics and Management (scientific adviser - Professor G.A. Khmeleva) who talked about possible effective ways of the development of the Samara region urban districts on the principles of "smart specialization", she also reported the results of her scientific research on justification of prospective specializations of the Samara region. 3rd year students of the programs "Regional Economics" and "State and Municipal Management" presented the results of the groups analytical work for substantiation of the perspective economic specializations for the urban districts of our region.

Foresight discussion contributed to identifing possible directions of "smart growth" of the Samara region urban districts, which can be practically used in the regional economic policy.