Regional variety and employment growth in Italian labour market areas: services versus manufacturing industries

This paper investigates the impact of regional sectoral diversity on regional employment growth in Italy over the period 1991-2001. Assuming that externalities may be stronger between industries selling similar products or sharing the same skills and technology (i.e. related industries), we analyze the role of different forms of sectoral variety at the Local Labour System (LLS) level. We consider variety both in terms of shared complementary competences that induce effective interactive learning and innovation, as well as a portfolio strategy to protect a region from external shocks in demand. Our results show strong evidence of a general beneficial effect of a diversified sectoral structure but suggest also the need to differentiate the analysis between manufacturing and services. In particular, overall local employment growth seems to be favoured by the presence of a higher variety of related service industries, while no role is played by related variety in manufacturing. When looking at diversity externalities between macro-aggregates, the service industry is affected by related variety in manufacturing, while no evidence of externalities is found from tertiary sectors to manufacturing

How does Labour Mobility affect the Performance of Plants? The importance of relatedness and geographical proximity

This paper analyses the impact of skill portfolios and labour mobility on plant performance by means of a unique database that connects attributes of individuals to features of plants for the whole Swedish economy. We found that a portfolio of related competences at the plant level increases significantly productivity growth of plants, in contrast to plant portfolios consisting of either similar or unrelated competences. Based on the analysis of 101,093 job moves, we found that inflows of skills that are related to the existing knowledge base of the plant had a positive effect on plant performance, while the inflow of new employees with skills that are already present in the plant had a negative impact. Our analyses also show that geographical proximity influences the effect of different skill inflows. Inflows of unrelated skills only contribute positively to plant performance when these are recruited in the same region. Labour mobility across regions only has a positive effect on productivity growth of plants when this concerns new employees with related skills.Labour mobility; related variety; skill portfolio; plant performance; geographical proximi

Мероприятия по улучшению инвестиционного климата в контексте инвестиционной стратегии региона

In this article, we study the formation of network ties between firms along the life cycle of a creative industry. We focus on three mechanisms that drive network formation: (i) network endogeneity which stresses a path-dependent change originating from previous network structures, (ii) five forms of proximity (e.g. geographical proximity) which ascribe tie formation to the similarity of attributes of firms and (iii) individual characteristics which refer to the heterogeneity in the capabilities of firms to exploit external knowledge. The article employs a stochastic actor-oriented model to estimate the – changing – effects of these mechanisms on the formation of the interfirm network in the global video game industry from 1987 to 2007. Our findings indicate that, on average, the direction of the effects of the three mechanisms are stable over time, but that their weights change with the degree of maturity of the industry. To an increasing extent, video game firms tend to prefer to partner over short distances and with more cognitively similar firms as the industry evolves

Ressources cognitives et développement territorial : une analyse textuelle appliquée aux politiques locales de développement durable

International audienceThis paper focuses on how the development of a particular region consistently requires actors to share a certain level of cognitive resources. In the case studied here - the Nord Pas-de-Calais region, this cognitive proximity is built via the local policies involving sustainable development. In order to comprehend the way local communities of the region activate this resource, we used textual data treatment analyzing about thirty interviews. The results suggest that this cognitive proximity relies on two fundamentals elements: on the one hand, valuing the patrimonial infrastructures of the territory; and on the other hand, rebuilding the territorial identity of the region. Then the local policies lean both on the values that underlie these elements and on rhetorical modalities, to impulse in-depth changes that would have been more difficult to implement from the usual political levers.Cet article étudie comment un développement régional cohérent nécessite la mobilisation de ressources cognitives partagées. Dans le cas étudié - la région Nord Pas-de-Calais, cette proximité cognitive se construit via les politiques locales, sur la base du référentiel de développement durable. Pour saisir la manière dont les collectivités de la région activent cette ressource, nous avons mobilisé les outils d'analyse textuelle sur une trentaine d'entretiens auprès des acteurs publics du développement durabe. Les résultats mis en évidence suggèrent que cette proximité cognitive repose sur deux éléments fondamentaux : d'une part la mise en valeur d'un patrimoine infrastructurel territorialisé, et d'autre part la reconstruction d'une identité territoriale. Les politiques locales prennent ainsi appui sur les valeurs qui sous-tendent ces éléments ainsi que sur des modalités rhétoriques, pour impulser en profondeur une dynamique de changement, plus malaisée à mettre en œuvre partir des outils politiques habituels

“100 Years of University Nursing Education”: The Significance of a Baccalaureate Nursing Degree and Its Public Health Origins for Nursing Now

Abstract The 100-year milestone of university nursing education at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 2019 offers a pause for reflection and inquiry. History assists us to illuminate current issues and debates in light of past events. An examination of the legacy of Ethel Johns and others who held the vision of why nursing education should enter the university in 1919 sheds light on its historical significance, then and now. The first Director, Ethel Johns, referred to the establishment of the University of British Columbia Department of Nursing and the degree program it offered as “the experiment” (Johns, 1936). Reflections on “the experiment” provides a standpoint to consider how this courageous and visionary leader might have viewed the way “the experiment” is faring within the 21st century landscape of Canadian university nursing education. This reflection on the history of university nursing education and its public health origins is all the more pressing in the World Health Organization (WHO) declared International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife and, unprecedented over the last century, the emergence of a global COVID-19 pandemic and related public health crisis. The initiation of university education in 1919 was in part spurred by the Influenza epidemic of 1918 amidst a realization of the need for a breadth and depth of nursing education in public health and leadership, which was argued to be best situated within the regular post-secondary education system. We contend that this reflection is once again needed in nursing education programs. We offer a critique of how the pandemic of 2020 can illuminate current shortcomings in the baccalaureate preparation of nurses. The present context of the pandemic might prompt efforts to ensure nursing capacity is sufficient to engage with a public health crisis and provide the leadership – needed now, as it was then. Résumé Les 100 ans de formation universitaire en sciences infirmières à la University of British Columbia (UBC) en 2019 ont permis un temps de pause pour une réflexion et une évaluation. L’histoire nous aide à éclairer les problèmes et les débats actuels à la lumière des évènements passés. Un examen de l’héritage d’Ethel Johns et d’autres qui ont partagé une vision de la raison pour laquelle la formation en sciences infirmières devrait être offerte à l’université en 1919 fait la lumière sur son importance historique passée et présente. La première directrice, Ethel Johns, fait référence à la création du département des sciences infirmières de la University of British Columbia et le programme alors offert comme étant « l’expérience » (Johns, 1936). Les réflexions sur « l’expérience » offrent un point de vue pour considérer comment cette chef de file courageuse et visionnaire pourrait avoir vu la façon dont « l’expérience » se porte dans le contexte de la formation en sciences infirmières dans les universités canadiennes au 21e siècle. Cette réflexion sur l’histoire de la formation universitaire en sciences infirmières et ses origines de santé publique est d’autant plus pressante depuis que l’Organisation mondiale de la Santé (OMS) a déclaré cette année comme l’Année internationale des sages-femmes et du personnel infirmier, et suite à l’émergence d’une pandémie mondiale de COVID-19 et la crise de santé publique qui y est liée. Le commencement de la formation universitaire en 1919 a été en partie stimulée par l’épidémie de grippe de 1918 et la constatation du besoin d’une formation en sciences infirmières en santé publique et leadership, dont le meilleur endroit a été déterminé comme étant dans le système régulier d’études supérieures. Nous maintenons que cette réflexion est nécessaire une fois de plus dans les programmes de formation en sciences infirmières. Nous offrons une critique de la façon dont la pandémie de 2020 peut éclaircir les lacunes actuelles dans la préparation des infirmières au baccalauréat. Le contexte actuel de la pandémie pourrait susciter des efforts pour s’assurer que la capacité des services infirmiers est suffisante pour gérer une crise de santé publique et offrir le leadership qui est maintenant nécessaire, comme il l’a été à cette époque

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

Система німецьких таборів для радянських військовополонених в Україні: (червень – грудень 1941 р.)

У статті описані етапи становлення впродовж літа-осені 1941 р. системи німецьких таборів для радянських військовополонених на території України.В статье описаны этапы становления в течение лета-осени 1941 г. системы немецких лагерей для советских военнопленных на территории Украины.The article describes the stages of establishment of the German camp system for Soviet prisoners of war on the territory of Ukraine

Modelling Hierarchy and Specialization of a System of Cities from an Evolutionary Perspective on Firms' Interactions

Despite their great diversity, most systems of cities show remarkably similar patterns when comparing the size distribution and the economic specialization of their constitutive cities. The universality of these patterns sparked the interest of geographers, economists and physicists. However, until now, no economic model has relied on a micro-based and evolutionary approach to reproduce these regularities. In this chapter, we intend to fill this gap by proposing a model where the micro dynamics of localized firms generate the two macro regularities of size distribution and economic specialization. The model is based on boundedly rational firms’ competition and path dependent innovation. We discuss the possible emergence of macro properties from these micro behaviors of firms

Technological diversification and new innovators in European regions:evidence from patent data

This paper assesses the impact of regional technological diversification on the emergence of new innovators across EU regions. Integrating analyses from regional economics, economic geography and technological change literatures, we explore the role that the regional embeddedness of actors characterised by diverse technological competencies may have in fostering novel and sustained interactions leading to new technological combinations. In particular, we test whether greater technological diversification improve regional ‘combinatorial’ opportunities leading to the emergence of new innovators. The analysis is based on panel data obtained merging regional economic data from Eurostat and patent data from the CRIOS-PATSTAT database over the period 1997–2006, covering 178 regions across 10 EU Countries. Accounting for different measures of economic and innovative activity at the NUTS2 level, our findings suggest that the regional co-location of diverse technological competencies contributes to the entry of new innovators, thereby shaping technological change and industry dynamics. Thus, this paper brings to the fore a better understanding of the relationship between regional diversity and technological change

Growing with the market : how changing conditions during market growth affect formation and evolution of interfirm ties

Research Summary: Market conditions are known to matter for firm performance and growth. This study explores how changing levels of uncertainty and competition affect interfirm ties of entrepreneurial firms as markets transition from nascent to growth stage. Tracing 6 entrepreneurial game publishers during the growth stage of the US wireless gaming market, the findings reveal that in a growth stage market, as uncertainty decreases, certain ties of entrepreneurial firms are terminated. First, existing partners may cut ties and become competitors after entering the market directly. This is a “winner's curse” as more successful firms are more likely to entice their partners to enter the market directly. Second, ties may be terminated as prominent firms that are “overwhelmed” with too many partners cut ties with low to mediocre performance while their remaining partners enter a positive spiral of tie strength and performance. Finally, as uncertainty decreases, new firms may enter the market as competitors to prominent firms. While entrepreneurial firms with high and low performing ties to prominent partners may find ties with these new entrants attractive, those with mediocre ties to few prominent partners find this move too risky and wait for a first mover to legitimate it. Overall, the findings show that changing levels of uncertainty and competition in growth stage markets can have different consequences for firms due to heterogeneity in their ties and power relative to partners. The findings provide several contributions to literature regarding the relationship between interfirm ties, firm performance, and market evolution. Managerial Summary: Based on interviews at 6 entrepreneurial game publishers in the US and their partners, this study shows how changing levels of uncertainty and competition in growing markets can have different consequences for firms based on the different types of alliances in their portfolio and their power relative to partners. The findings highlight the importance of managing partners differently based on alliance type and goal of the partner. They advocate remaining flexible in alliance management as information asymmetries, intentions and bargaining power of partners can change and lead to abrupt alliance dissolution. They show that alliance portfolio management goes beyond a firm's capability of managing individual alliances, and provide a tool for managers to evaluate their alliance portfolios and take the necessary precautions