This initial phase contemplates the design of the model of the Agenda, and it has as objective: design, in the most extensive, inclusive and complete possible, the start strategy of the Innovation Agenda.

In this process, a key element is the identification of the actors with high organizational, negotiating, financial and research capacity who could be eligible to participate as potential partners, contributing material, human or financial resources.

It is also important at this stage to define and select the topic to be addressed as a possible problem are for priority attention. This includes an analysis of the environment in which the topic to be addressed and the actors associated with it are identified, as well as the political, social, economic and environmental viability. The strategy to be implemented on the issue identified as a priority demand is designed, as well as the methodology to be used.

The methodological strategy of the agenda is related with the form and the modes to detect the problems, the priority lines of attention in which they are transformed into concrete projects where they comply with criteria of relevance, opportunity, feasibility and excellence. In this aspect, the role of the leading expert advisors (consultants) of the sector under study is especially important, as it will help to elucidate the most appropriate ways of approaching the subject.

Once the subject matter and the strategies to be followed have been identified, as well as the possible actors or applicants interested in solving the problem from the research point of view, a round of inter-institutional negotiations is initiated through workshops to detect the areas of cooperation and partnership.

The process of negotiating priorities involves proposing and implementing clearly defined rules of the game by the institution promoting the agenda with both, traditional and non-traditional actors, as researches in the first case or public bodies, non-governmental organizations, in the second one. In other words, different forms of civil society organizations.

The second aspect needed to be addressed is the methodology of the workshops to be held. In general, these workshops consist of presentations – guidelines by each of the participating sectors or leading actors and working groups.

The working groups are organized with the balanced and equitable participation of traditional and non-traditional actors to submit for consideration instruments that allow the hierarchization of problems and lines of research or technological production associated with these problems. The identification, selection and order of the problems must be based on criteria defined by the working groups. Once completed, the results are analyzed, synthesized and validated, which will produce the consensus document to be published in the next phase.