Cooperation between education and the world of work is in a flux. Economic and societal pressures call for new types of cooperation and a transformation towards knowledge-producing communities. Educational institutions need to be more active in driving innovations and social development. These diverse innovative outputs to the regional economies demand going beyond traditional ways of collaboration.

Omnia (the Joint Authority of Education in the Espoo Region), Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, and Laurea University of Applied Sciences have piloted numerous projects that address the varying needs of regional innovation capability, youth employability, and entrepreneurial outlook.

This article presents cases of new types of knowledge-based cooperation that challenge the conventional roles of education, business and the public sector in the Helsinki Region. The results are very promising. It is possible to simultaneously advance educational goals, support entrepreneurial innovations, and create positive social impact. Attaining all of these goals demands changes in thinking, however. Instead of fixed expert roles, system participants must move towards acknowledging all expertise in its various forms. Conventional barriers in communication must be torn down. Education must move out of the campuses and into the real world and educators must become coaches and mediators rather than traditional lecturers.