The LEAD ERA project is aimed at fostering the coordination of a series of trans-regional programmes dedicated to research and innovation within the highly innovative and technology based themes of the EU Lead market initiative. Through a process of intensive knowledge sharing of the regional competences and programmes, LEAD ERA partners will develop a joint Scientific and Technological strategy and the mutual tools and methods to foster RTD cooperation amongst their regional RTD stakeholders. The project is under the coordination of the experienced Walloon region and brings together the following innovative and science based regions, Veneto, Galicia, Franche-Comte, Lower Austria, Alsace, Basque Country, Andalusia, Navarra and Region of Western Greece; two countries: Greece and France. During the 60 months of the project, the partners will focus on the topic of the 6 Lead Markets identified by the European Union. All of them are at the crossroad of a number of scientific and technological fields which are difficult for a single region to master. It is therefore economically and scientifically relevant to link the research competences from the various regions to achieve new technological and knowledge breakthroughs. The current proposal LEAD ERA seeks to link the two initiatives (lead markets and ERANET) by adding the research dimension to the support provided to the lead markets. The regions will bring together a joint fund dedicated to the launch of ambitious RTD calls for proposals. These activities will provide new resources for their regional RTD actors to work at a European level and, trans-national projects involving RTD actors from the private or the public sector. A common strategy of communication and dissemination system will pave the way to create other joint collaborations between the various regional actors and even beyond the scope of the LEAD ERA consortium.