2016 marks a stronger presence for the 9CTL than in previous years.

Indeed, this year sees a strengthening of the Lombardy presence, with 6 out of 9 clusters participating in the "European Cluster Conference 2016: Shaping smart industries", a strategic policy event hosted by the European Commission, which will take place in Brussels on 1 and 2 December. The Lombardy Energy Cleantech Cluster - LE2C was even selected as a speaker, contributing to the session.

In the meantime, LE2C is also present at the Green Days event within the Pollutec trade fair, featuring B2B and inter-cluster meetings.

In this context, the participation of the AFIL - Associazione Fabbrica Intelligente Lombarda cluster is also significant, having attended the "Smart Specialisation Platform on Industrial Specialisation" Kick-Off Event in Barcelona on 16 and 17 November as a Vanguard Initiative pilot coordinator to present the "Efficient and Sustainable Manufacturing - ESM" theme, as well as the 2nd edition of the “Living Room of Emerging Industries in Milan” conference held on 24 November at Palazzo Pirelli.

However, their presence has extended beyond European borders. The Lombardy Aerospace Cluster participated in the System Mission to São Paulo and São José dos Campos held from 23 to 25 November, organised by Confindustria, the Italian Trade Agency (ICE), and the Italian Banking Association (ABI), in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; thanks to the attendance of President Angelo Vallerani, the excellence of the Lombardy aerospace sector was showcased.

Meanwhile, the Life Science Cluster organised a mission to Israel, arranging institutional and business meetings for its members, as well as visits to several advanced organisations in the biomedical sector.

LE2C, for its part, has succeeded in involving several of its cleantech companies in the "Low Carbon Business Action" project in Brazil and Mexico.

Finally, there have been various funding applications for European projects involving LE2C, AFIL, SCC (Smart Cities and Communities), and CAT.AL (Agrifood), with the latter two becoming part of the European Strategic Cluster Partnerships.