Understanding the ways and the dynamics of collaborative innovation processes: the case of the Maritime Cluster of the Algarve region (Portugal)

The Algarve region has always showed a close relationship with the sea as a result of its excellent natural conditions, historical and cultural reasons, and notorious know-how related with traditional maritime activities, such as fisheries and fish processing, and naval industry; more recently, nautical activities, such as tourism and recreational boating, have been gaining increased importance. The region is also well infrastructured in terms of public R&D institutions which are important cornerstones of the regional and national innovation systems. Through surveys carried out over a population of firms related to fisheries, aquaculture, fish processing and trade, nautical tourism, naval construction, and repair and shipping, we intend to: (1) characterize the innovation processes adopted by the Algarve’s firms of the maritime economy and evaluate some of the main outputs generated by R&D activities promoted by the regional innovation centers; (2) analyze the potential externalities linked to the production and dissemination of information from knowledge spillovers and knowledge networks; and (3) assess the strategic interest associated with the use of knowledge-intensive service activities regarding their role as sources and/or facilitators of innovation in customer organizations, or as carriers of innovation, when they help in transferring knowledge between or within organizations

Local Nodes in Global Networks: The Geography of Knowledge Flows in Biotechnology Innovation

The literature on innovation and interactive learning has tended to emphasize the importance of local networks, inter-firm collaboration and knowledge flows as the principal source of technological dynamism. More recently, however, this view has come to be challenged by other perspectives that argue for the importance of non-local knowledge flows. According to this alternative approach, truly dynamic economic regions are characterized both by dense local social interaction and knowledge circulation, as well as strong inter-regional and international connections to outside knowledge sources and partners. This paper offers an empirical examination of these issues by examining the geography of knowledge flows associated with innovation in biotechnology. We begin by reviewing the growing literature on the nature and geography of innovation in biotechnology research and the commercialization process. Then, focusing on the Canadian biotech industry, we examine the determinants of innovation (measured through patenting activity), paying particular attention to internal resources and capabilities of the firm, as well as local and global flows of knowledge and capital. Our study is based on the analysis of Statistics Canada’s 1999 Survey of Biotechnology Use and Development, which covers 358 core biotechnology firms. Our findings highlight the importance of in-house technological capability and absorptive capacity as determinants of successful innovation in biotechnology firms. Furthermore, our results document the precise ways in which knowledge circulates, in both embodied and disembodied forms, both locally and globally. We also highlight the role of formal intellectual property transactions (domestic and international) in promoting knowledge flows. Although we document the importance of global networks in our findings, our results also reveal the value of local networks and specific forms of embedding. Local relational linkages are especially important when raising capital—and the expertise that comes with it—to support innovation. Nevertheless, our empirical results raise some troubling questions about the alleged pre-eminence of the local in fostering innovation

Reflections on the innovative city : examining three innovative locations in a knowledge bases framework

Abstract This paper combines three location-based cases with literature background focusing on knowledge bases and cities. The paper considers the regional context of the city of Helsinki and its surrounding area (HMA). Analyzed cases include three specific locations highlighting urban form, connectivity and knowledge-intensive production. Conceptually innovative cities are experiencing extensive change as they transform and change in order to become competitive providers of first class living for highly skilled global work-force. The integration of spatial characteristics into analyses of knowledge intensiveness of cities brings forth new theoretical openings for urban analysis setting platforms for open innovation and economy. The paper focuses on extensive material resources collected in numerous projects. The data gives more reliable picture of the knowledge-intensive locations compared to single interviews or survey studies. The total data includes work and education statistics, stakeholder interviews and observation field work. Provided reflections are classified according to key issues presented in urban studies and economic geography

Entrepreneurial academics and regional innovation systems: the case of spin-offs from London's universities

In this paper we explore the spin-off process from London’s universities using a regional innovation systems (RIS) framework. We examine the pattern of spin-offs in the context of changes in institutional support systems, both within the universities and in the London region. The majority of the university-related spin-offs are small and medium-sized enterprises concentrated in biomedical sectors, as elsewhere. However, over a third have left London. We explore these patterns, the implications for understanding the role of universities in RIS, and consequent policy implications

Economic crisis and the construction of a neo-liberal regulatory regime in Korea

A consistent theme of the literature on the ontology of the 1997 South Korean crisis is the key role played by regulatory failures and the growing weakness of the state. This paper seeks to briefly highlight both the insights and the limitations of this approach to understanding the crisis. Having done so, we shall set out the argument that the crisis created an opportunity for reformist Korean élites to advance their longstanding, but previously frustrated, project to create a comprehensive unambiguously neo-liberal regulatory regime. This paper will also seek to highlight the implications of our reading of the development of the Korean political economy for broader debates on economic liberalisation, crisis and the future of the developmental state

Effectiveness of regional innovation actions: cases from small, low-innovative regions

This paper attempts to identify the suitability of centrally designed innovation-related regional actions, examining the case of regions that started innovative activities from a low development level. Using the case of two Greek regions, the paper analyses the legacy left to the regional systems by a series of regional innovation programmes implemented during the 1990s and 2000s, whose main priorities were designed centrally without any regional consultation. The findings suggest that these programmes often provide the means for generating the first steps towards the creation of a Regional Innovation System; however often they create a dependency on publicly funded programmes

Policies for new path development: the case of Oxfordshire

This chapter reflects on how evolutionary economic geography (EEG) can be extended to incorporate public policy in its explanations of path development. A weakness of EEG is the poor conceptualisation of the role of the state (central, regional, local) in regional path development. It is therefore argued that a multi-scalar perspective of policy is required and that a large set of policies deserve attention. Oxfordshire in the UK is used to explore the link between public policy and path development