Regional differences in technology : theory and empirics

The aim of this paper is, on the one hand, to give a review of several streams in the litera-ture which differ with respect to the extent they assume knowledge to spread over regions. On the other hand, this paper shows the extent to which these theories are supported empirically. The regional neoclassical growth model focuses on the immediate diffusion of technological knowledge. Alternative theories like cumulative causation and imperfect diffusion theories focus on the issue that technology gaps between regions will persist over time. Cumulative causation assumes that there exists no diffusion of knowledge, while imperfect diffusion theories assume that diffusion will take place, though slowly. These theoretical insights lead to several testable hypotheses on the presence and the development over time of regional technology gaps. This paper attempts to use a new set of data on R&D in the European Union to explore this field. Evidence from regional R&D statistics will be used to highlight differences in technological activity between the regions within the leading European economies. Also the factors that are proposedly related to the relative technological activity of a region are analysed, in addition to the long term implications of technology gaps.research and development ;

The Geographic Distribution of Patents and Value Added Across European

Until recently, the geographic element of concentrations of economic activity and knowledge spillovers was almost completely disregarded by economic theory. Although space is a central concept in theories in the field of geography, geographers have not attached great value to technology as a motivating factor for clustering of economic activity. A pooled market of skilled labour and the availability of nontraded inputs are considered much more important as factors that induce the clustering of firms (Krugman 1991). Several recent studies for the US (among others Jaffe, Trajtenberg and Henderson 1993, Audretsch and Feldman 1994, Feldman 1994) examined the extent to which innovative as well as economic activity clusters spatially. Until recently there were no data available for Europe on this issue. By means of a new data set, namely regional patent data for Europe, this paper will try to identify differences in geographic concentration in patents (as a proxy for innovation) and manufacturing value added over several industries. Several statistical techniques will be used to gather information on the spatial pattern of variation in patents and manufacturing value added across European regions.regional and urban economics ;

Spatial distance in a technology gap model

This paper analyses the effect of locally bounded knowledge spillovers on regionaldifferences in growth. A model will be developed that allows spillovers to take place acrossregions. Certain conditions determine the amount of spillovers a region receives. By use ofsimulations (with randomised parameter constellations), it is possible to examine the generalbehaviour of the model. It is found that certain patterns in the gaps of the knowledge stocksappear repeatedly. The inclusion of geographical distance in a technology gap model leads tothe observation that when differences (in parameters such as the learning capability or theexogenous rate of knowledge generation) increase across regions, the disparity in terms ofGDP per capita between them decreases. This counterintuitive result is a direct effect from theinclusion of geographical distance in the model.regional and urban economics ;

The effects of economic integration on regional growth, an evolutionary model

This paper will present a multi-region-multi-country model in which inter-regional knowledgespillovers determine the growth of regions. Key parameters in the model are the learningcapability of a region, and the exogenous rate of knowledge generation (R&D). The intensityof spillovers depends on geographical distance between regions. The model is investigated bymeans of simulation techniques. What results is a core-periphery situation, the exact form ofwhich depends on the assumed spatial structure. One surprising result of the analysis is thatlarger technological differences between regions may lead to smaller disparity in terms of thelong-run spatial distribution of GDP per capita.The impact of economic integration is investigated by comparing two different aspects ofthe model. First, examining a fixed exchange rate system versus a system of flexible exchangerates results in conditions (constellations of parameters) under which fixed exchange rates(compared to flexible exchange rates) generate less disparity across regions. However,depending on the parameter values, fixed exchange rates may also generate more disparity,leading to the conclusion that the effect of monetary integration is ambiguous.Second, the impact of barriers to knowledge spillovers is analysed by assuming that crossborder knowledge flows are hampered compared to inter-country flows. This results in theobservation that reduced cross border flows have a large impact when regions are initiallyunequal with respect to their exogenous rate of knowledge generation or their learningcapability. In these cases, the resulting trends in overall disparity are quite different from thetrends established in a situation of no barriers to knowledge spillovers.international economics and trade ;

The Jatropha Biofuels Sector in Tanzania 2005-9: Evolution Towards Sustainability?

Biofuel production has recently attracted a great deal of attention. Some anticipate substantial social and environmental benefits, while at the same time expecting sound profitability for investors. Others are more doubtful, envisaging large trade-offs between the pursuit of social, environmental and economic objectives, particularly in poor countries in the tropics. The paper explores these issues in Tanzania, which is a forerunner in Africa in the cultivation of a bio-oil shrub called Jatropha curcas L. We trace how isolated Jatropha biofuel experiments developed since their inception in early 2005 towards a fully fledged sectoral production and innovation system; and investigate to what extent that system has been capable of developing ànd maintaining sustainable practices and producing sustainable outcomes. The application of evolutionary economic theory allows us to view the development processes in the sector as a result of evolutionary variation and selection on the one hand, and revolutionary contestation between different coalitions of stakeholders on the other. Both these processes constitute significant engines of change in the sector. While variation and selection is driven predominantly by localised learning, the conflict-driven dynamics are highly globalised. The sector is found to have moved some way towards a full sectoral innovation and production system, but it is impossible to predict whether a viable sector with a strong “triple bottom line” orientation will ultimate emerge, since many issues surrounding the social, environmental and financial sustainability still remain unresolved.biofuels, evolutionary theory, innovation systems, sustainability, stakeholder conflict, learning, Tanzania.

What drives innovativeness in industrial clusters? : transcending the debate

The paper throws new light on the debate about the role played by local knowledge spillovers (LKS) as a driver of regional innovative activity. It transcends the regional level of analysis that has been commonly adopted in the literature so far, using insights from the evolutionary theory of the firm. This makes it possible to derive a typology of mechanisms through which regional agglomeration may stimulate learning and innovation. When this typology is brought to bear on the extant approaches in the debate, the contrasting viewpoints can be reconciled to some extent. The main conclusion is that little theoretical ground for the LKS debate remains

Strategic niche management as an operational tool for sustainable innovation : guidelines for practice

Strategic Niche Management provides an evolutionary analytical framework that has proven useful for the analysis of success and failure in the introduction of radical innovations in fields such as wind energy, biomass, public transport systems and food production. However, SNM has yielded few detailed and practical "how to do it" guidelines for practitioners interested in how to incubate new technologies. This paper takes one step towards greater operationalisation of SNM as a practical tool for managing the development of radically new technologies. We consolidate the existing SNM studies to identify the main gaps in that literature. Then we bring in studies on the development and commercialisation of radical innovations in large companies and draw lessons from these with respect to "how to do" radical innovation, shedding new light on the nature of niche-based learning processes that are needed for these innovations to mature. A number of concrete guidelines for implementing the Strategic Niche Development approach are given

The Jatropha biofuels sector in Tanzania 2005-9 : evolution towards sustainability?

Biofuel production has recently attracted a great deal of attention. Some anticipate substantial social and environmental benefits, while at the same time expecting sound profitability for investors. Others are more doubtful, envisaging large trade-offs between the pursuit of social, environmental and economic objectives, particularly in poor countries in the tropics. The paper explores these issues in Tanzania, which is a forerunner in Africa in the cultivation of a bio-oil shrub called Jatropha curcas L. We trace how isolated Jatropha biofuel experiments developed since their inception in early 2005 towards a fully fledged sectoral production and innovation system; and investigate to what extent that system has been capable of developing ànd maintaining sustainable practices and producing sustainable outcomes. The application of evolutionary economic theory allows us to view the development processes in the sector as a result of evolutionary variation and selection on the one hand, and revolutionary contestation between different coalitions of stakeholders on the other. Both these processes constitute significant engines of change in the sector. While variation and selection is driven predominantly by localised learning, the conflict-driven dynamics are highly globalised. The sector is found to have moved some way towards a full sectoral innovation and production system, but it is impossible to predict whether a viable sector with a strong "triple bottom line" orientation will ultimate emerge, since many issues surrounding the social, environmental and financial sustainability still remain unresolved

Elektronisch werkboek

Het project "Het ontwikkelen en flexibel uitleverbare digitale onderwijsmaterialen (werkprocessen genoemd)" heeft als doel de werkprocessen te ondersteunen voor het ontwerpen en ontwikkelen van onderwijs met leidende trefwoorden als webgebaseerde aansturing, multimediale inzet, interactiviteit, en activerend onderwijs

Emergence of a biofuel economy in Tanzania : local developments and global connections from an institutional perspective

Jatropha is emerging as an important biofuel crop throughout developing countries in the tropics. Initially lauded as an environmentally-benign ‘wonder crop’ suitable for arid wasteland cultivation that would avoid competition with scarce livelihood resources, it has recently begun to attract mounting criticisms related to competition with food production, biodiversity impacts, insecurity of land access by local populations, exploitative employment conditions, and disappointing effects on greenhouse gas emission reduction. In this paper we analyse the nature of the local developments that have given rise to these criticisms, and the underlying innovation processes and global forces that are driving the sector in the direction of these contested outcomes. We focus on Tanzania, an important forerunner in Jatropha biofuels production whose experiences have informed the international biofuel debate more broadly. Two surveys among biofuel actors in Tanzania held in 2005 and 2008/9 are the primary data sources. An extended innovation systems perspective is adopted, which is instrumental in studying patterns of global and local institutional embeddedness from a long-term perspective. These patterns are found to be key drivers behind the emergence and evolution of three distinct organizational models in the sector: local energy production and use for rural communities; decentralised subcontracting for centralised oil processors; and large centralised plantations. Socio-economic interactions in these models seem to be regulated by institutions put in place by colonial and early post-colonial governance of agri-commodity production and exchange. Each is also closely associated with different social (network) relations, organizational choices, economic viability, and environmental sustainability effects