Did you know that Chihuahua, Mexico, is where TCI Network’s journey began over 27 years ago? That’s right! This year, we returned to the birthplace of our network to celebrate the 27th TCI Global Conference. The occasion was especially meaningful—not only did we look ahead to the future of collaboration and the opportunities AI presents, but we also took a moment to reflect on the origins of cluster work and how far we’ve come since then.

TCI Network was born thanks to a visionary group of cluster pioneers. Back in 1997, during a World Bank conference in Chihuahua, they saw the need for an international organization dedicated to fostering cluster development and providing a platform for professionals in the field. Just one year later, TCI Network was officially established in Barcelona, Spain.

Now, 27 years later, we came full circle by returning to Chihuahua for our 27th TCI Global Conference. And we couldn’t miss the chance to honor the pioneers who made it all possible.

While some of them couldn’t join us, we were delighted to welcome Bob Breault, Michael Enright, Juan Manuel Esteban, Leonel Guerra, Alec Hansen, Eric Hansen, Alberto Pezzi, and Alonso Ramos to the event.

We owe them—and all our members—a tremendous debt of gratitude for their support in growing and sustaining TCI over the years. During #TCI2024 in Chihuahua, we celebrated their contributions with a special recognition of our founders, as well as our Board of Directors and long-standing members who have been by our side on this journey.

One of those members is Linda Jameson from Invest Northern Ireland. Not only has Linda been a part of TCI for over 10 years, but she will also play a pivotal role as one of the organizers of our 2025 Global Conference in Dublin.

Read Linda’s interview about her TCI journey and the upcoming 2025 Global Conference...