Promotion of new technologies by European regional development agencies - The case of Austria.

According to the current focus of the regional policy of the European Union on sustainable regional development the question arises - what are the key-elements to achieve a sustainable regional pathway? The identification of these key-factors is a challenge for the regional policy in each member state. One elementary key-factor is the promotion of new technologies as part of a regional innovation strategy. Regional institutions which support environmental improvements within regions can be identified as key-actors for achieving a sustainable regional pathway. This contribution focuses mainly on the analysis of these institutions within Austrian regions that are analysed within a research project funded by the Austrian National Bank ("Jubiläumsfonds der Österreichischen Nationalbank"). The main objectives are the following: (a) Identification of those institutions relevant for fostering new technologies to achieve a sustainable regional development. (b) Typology of these institutions to gain an appreciation of the relevant policies and activities of the regional development agencies in regions in fostering within companies new technologies which support environmental improvements, both in their own regions and elsewhere in the European Union. (c) Analysis of the institutions activities (activity profiles) (d) To foster an exchange of information on policy in these activities between the agencies. (e) Identification of network activities between different types of regional institutions. The main research question focusses on the relevance of existing regional institutions and their ability of fulfilling the challenges of sustainable regional development goals. Their role within the regional innovation system and their flexibility to change their target group profiles seems relevant for successful applications of sustainable regional development strategies. The question of the relevance of completely new types of institutions or only adapted profiles of still existing institutions needs to be answered. The paper will focus on the Austrian institutional landscape. Several types of regional institutions will be analysed within a survey based on standardised questionnaires. Within a second step of analysis those types of institutions with explicitly focuses on sustainable regional projects will be further analysed with in-depth case studies.

New challenges in regional development - the role of regional institutions

The paper is based on an institutional survey in Austria. The aim of the survey was to identify different types of regional institutions - traditional versus new innovative institutions. The main research focus concentrated on new challenges in regional development processes resulting from the EU-strategy to foster sustainable regional development in the member states. As a consequence the question of the relevance of completely new types of institutions arises on the one hand. These new types are directly linked to the EU structural fund policy, e.g. LEADER+ manager, EU regional manager. With respect to this focus these institutions mainly concentrate on EU programmes and initiatives. On the other hand the traditional institutions have their specific focus on e.g. tourism, economic development etc. not necessarily with any direct link to EU-programmes. Therefore this contribution starts with a general institutional analysis (i.e. organisational attributes, activity profiles, regional embeddedness, position in the regional stakeholder network, etc.) to find differences between traditional and new innovative institutions. Based on these attributes we will present the institutional landscape in Austrian regions. This landscape consists of the above mentioned traditional and the new innovative institutions. Are these co-existing institutions able to concentrate the top-down (i.e. regional policy) and the bottom-up (i.e. project initiatives) interests in order to foster sustainable regional initiatives? For answering this question we haven chosen several case-studies in different Austrian regions. This case study analysis will be presented as follows: * Strengths and weaknesses of different institutional settings (e.g. various competing institutions versus one strong institution) * Comparison of strategic decisions in the case study regions * Is there any ideal solution identifiable for other regions?

Problem centred city-hinterland management - a scientific and policy approach

According to models of urban development the relations between city cores and its hinterlands are defined by strong inter-linkages and interdependencies. Some examples for those are: - Procurement of reserve areas - Exchange of energy and mass-flows - Sharing of logistical and deposit functions. Co-operations are used to foster these inter-linkages and the institutional framework with its relevant actors (organisations, associations) embedded in both spatial areas are used to determine this frame. In former works we have identified two layers to analyse these co-operations (i.e. micro and macro level). The micro level can be defined also as the personal level where personal contacts and interactions in form of communication patterns and information flows determine the problem solution capacity, the relationship between the actors/players and the success and failure of a co-operation. The macro level can be defined as the overall framework conditions or the system related conditions. These conditions influence city-hinterland relations directly and are often the reason for failed co-operation efforts. Therefore it is necessary to check these conditions first. This paper will deal with the possible design and management of city-hinterland relations which may overcome conflicts and weaknesses. Our approach will not only be based upon empirical evidence from the Vienna region but also be embedded in an interdisciplinary scientific frame. We will therefore try to combine regional science and management science as well as behavioural science in this design. The key hypothesis will be that efficient and effective city-hinterland management will only be possible if centred on problems at hand rather than institutional routines. Co-operations in this context should help to strengthen this orientation. The empirical background of our paper will be drawn from the findings of a research project funded within the focal research programme "Kulturlandschaftsforschung" of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science. Within this research project four city-hinterland municipalities within the metropolitan area of Vienna have been thoroughly analysed. This contribution will provide the basic information to derive the mentioned theoretical framework.

Regional identity: a key to overcome structural weaknesses in peripheral rural regions?

Depopulation is a well-known phenomenon in peripheral rural regions. The most identified problems are based on structural weaknesses in terms of decreasing business activities and a lack of public infrastructure. In such regions population is mainly older causing major changes in social infrastructure. For instance many schools and kindergartens close down for lack of demand, which hinders young families to migrate to such regions. The result is typically a negative cumulative process of loss of population, loss of jobs, loss of infrastructure, further outmigration. It is an enormous challenge for such regions to overcome this vicious circle. Regional identity can be seen as an important factor to overcome such structural weaknesses. The paper will discuss the concept of regional identity in order to define the term and how it is embedded in regional development theory. The empirical analysis is presenting results focusing on regional identity coming out of a qualitative data analysis and a postal survey. We designed a regional identity index, which measures the intensity of personal and social relationships of both in-migrants and out-migrants

Green Building Councils: Their Economic Role as Governance Institutions

Green Building Councils (GBCs) have been established in many different countries in recent years. This paper discusses the role such organizations can play in the respective construction and real estate industry and under what circumstances a GBC can contribute positively to the development of a "greener" or "more sustainable" stock of buildings. The paper investigates the main informational problem of the industry by looking at the relation between a developer and an investor from an economic point of view. We argue that the investor's uncertainty about the true quality of a building and the corresponding incentive for the developer to cheat may lock them into a prisoners' dilemma trap. The corresponding barriers for a transition toward a "greener" buildings market are analyzed. GBCs are described as institutions of economic governance that can assist the economy in overcoming these problems. They can act as third party institutions in transactions between developers and investors. By certifying the quality of a building, they can reduce the risk for the investor to be cheated by the developer and also increase the incentive to develop good quality buildings for the developer. This task, however, raises some severe management challenges for the GBCs. (author's abstract)Series: SRE - Discussion Paper

Breaking the vicious cycle in peripheral rural regions: the case of "Waldviertler Wohlviertel" in Austria

Loss of population is a well-known phenomenon in peripheral rural regions. The most identified problems are based on structural weaknesses in terms of decreasing business activities and a lack of public infrastructure. In such regions population is mainly older causing major changes in social infrastructure. For instance many schools and kindergartens close down for lack of demand, which hinders young families to migrate to such regions. The result is typically a negative cumulative process of loss of population, loss of jobs, loss of infrastructure, further out migration. It is an enormous challenge for such regions to overcome this vicious circle. A more detailed look often shows a more differentiated picture and offers opportunities for policy action. First, although people are moving out of these locations new in-migrants are interested in such peripheral regions and their strengths, such as silence, a beautiful natural landscape without urban character etc. Second, new technologies enable skilled personnel to work without urban infrastructure and face-to-face networks. Third, there is an enormous potential in people who moved but do have permanent contact with their home region in terms of regaining them after retiring. The region under study "Waldviertler Wohlviertel Thaya-Taffa-Wild" consists of nine communities in the Austrian province of "Lower Austria". Since 2002 the region aims to develop a joint strategy for improving the regional conditions. The most pressing problem is the loss of population in the region which is accompanied by a loss of business activity and public infrastructure. Based on a detailed analysis of the situation, the study aims at identifying opportunities and strategies for counter action. The paper will present our empirical results focussing on regional identity coming out of a qualitative data analysis and a postal survey.Series: SRE - Discussion Paper

Sustainable regional development in Austria. The role of regional institutions by implementing a sustainable regional pathway.

According to the current focus of the regional policy of the European Union on sustainable regional development the question arises - what are the key-elements to achieve a sustainable regional pathway? The identification of these key-factors is a challenge for the regional policy in each member state. One elementary key-factor is the promotion of new technologies as part of a regional innovation strategy. Regional institutions which support environmental improvements within regions can be identified as key-actors for achieving a sustainable regional pathway. The main research question focuses on the relevance of existing regional institutions and their ability of fulfilling the challenges of sustainable regional development goals. Their role within the regional innovation system and their flexibility to change their target group profiles seems relevant for successful applications of sustainable regional development strategies. This contribution focuses exclusively on regional management institutions which were established after Austria's EU accession.Series: WU-Jahrestagung 200

The state of a regional innovation system in Styria. Conclusions and policy proposals. EU-TSER-REGIS Project "Regional Innovation Systems".

Series: SRE - Discussion Paper