Showing papers in "European Planning Studies in 2015"
TL;DR: The authors in this article reviewed the entrepreneurial ecosystem literature and its shortcomings, and provided a novel synthesis including a causal scheme of how the framework and sy... and a causal depth and evidence base is rather limited.
Abstract: Regional policies for entrepreneurship are currently going through a transition from increasing the quantity of entrepreneurship to increasing the quality of entrepreneurship. The next step will be the transition from entrepreneurship policy towards policy for an entrepreneurial economy. The entrepreneurial ecosystem approach has been heralded as a new framework accommodating these transitions. This approach starts with the entrepreneurial actor, but emphasizes the context of productive entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is not only the output of the system, entrepreneurs are important players themselves in creating the ecosystem and keeping it healthy. This research briefing reviews the entrepreneurial ecosystem literature and its shortcomings, and provides a novel synthesis. The entrepreneurial ecosystem approach speaks directly to practitioners, but its causal depth and evidence base is rather limited. This article provides a novel synthesis including a causal scheme of how the framework and sy...
1,051 citations
TL;DR: The current increase in socio-spatial inequalities in Europe has led to a revival of the terms "peripheralization" and "marginalization" in spatial research as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The current increase in socio-spatial inequalities in Europe has led to a revival of the terms “peripheralization” and “marginalization” in spatial research. In contrast to the geographical notion ...
247 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the RIS3 policy agenda is discussed and the main merit of RIS3 processes may lie in their contribution to changing routines and practices of governance even if those, for now, remain without measurable effect on policy.
Abstract: This paper reflects on the implementation of the RIS3 policy agenda. Based on two surveys and various phone interviews, it underlines that Europe's diverse pattern of institutional arrangements poses locally contingent policy challenges in which regional governance capacities are at least as important an issue as techno-economic potentials. In detail, it demonstrates how Southern Europe profited from novel practices while Eastern Europe had to invest substantially to change existing routines. Concluding, it argues that the main merit of RIS3 processes may, in fact, lie in their contribution to changing routines and practices of governance even if those, for now, remain without measurable effect on policy.
145 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide a framework for analysing universities' contributions to regional economic and societal development in differing national contexts and the policy institutions that underpin them, and show that these four models emphasize very different activities and outputs by which universities are seen to benefit regional economy and society.
Abstract: The literature on universities’ contributions to regional development is broad and diverse. A precise understanding of how regions may draw advantages from various university activities and the role of public policy institutions in promoting such activities is still missing. The aim of this paper is to provide a framework for analysing universities’ contributions to regional economic and societal development in differing national contexts and the policy institutions that underpin them. To do this, we review four conceptual models: the entrepreneurial university model, the regional innovation system (RIS) model, the mode 2 university model and the engaged university model. The paper demonstrates that these four models emphasize very different activities and outputs by which universities are seen to benefit regional economy and society. It is also shown that these models differ markedly with respect to the policy implications and practice. Analysing some of the public policy imperatives and incentives in the UK, Austria and Sweden, the paper highlights that in the UK, policies encourage all four university models. In contrast, in Sweden and Austria, policy institutions tend to privilege the RIS university model, whilst at the same time, there is some evidence for increasing support of the entrepreneurial university model.
140 citations
TL;DR: This paper explored the extent to which size and function are related for places in North-West Europe and tried to explain why one place borrows size while the other faces an agglomeration shadow by examining the position of places within the regional urban system.
Abstract: It has been argued that the concept of “borrowed size” is essential to understanding urban patterns and dynamics in North-West Europe. This paper conceptualizes this idea and provides an empirical exploration of it. A place borrows size when it hosts more urban functions than its own size could normally support. A borrowed size for one place means that other places face an “agglomeration shadow” because they host fewer urban functions than they would normally support. This paper explores the extent to which size and function are related for places in North-West Europe and tries to explain why one place borrows size while the other faces an agglomeration shadow by examining the position of places within the regional urban system. The presence of urban functions was approximated using high-end cultural amenities. We conclude that the largest places in their functional urban area (FUA) are better able to exploit their own mass. The largest place in a FUA is also better able to borrow size from nearby...
133 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a harmonized definition of functional urban areas in OECD countries is presented, highlighting for each of them the different links with policy and providing measures of polycentricity and explores the economic implications of different spatial structures.
Abstract: Contemporary urban systems in OECD countries are structured around functional regions, which often overcome established city-boundaries. Reading space in terms of functional regions allows assessing changes in urban hierarchies and spatial structures, including the polycentricity of urban systems at national, regional and metropolitan scales. By using a harmonized definition of functional urban areas in OECD countries, this paper first provides a sound definition of polycentricity at each spatial scale, highlighting for each of them the different links with policy. Second, it provides measures of polycentricity and explores the economic implications of different spatial structures. Results show that relatively more monocentric regions have higher GDP per capita than their more polycentric counterparts. At the country level, on the other hand, polycentricity is associated with higher GDP per capita.
132 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a simplified view of the role of agglomeration economies is provided; they are taken for granted in small and medium-sized cities and only in large cities will the problem of a downturn in urban returns to scale emerge.
Abstract: In the last 15 years, empirical evidence has emerged about the fact that European first-rank cities have not always led national economic performance, and when they did, the difference between first- and second-rank cities in explaining national growth has not been significant. A recent work [Dijkstra, L., Garcilazo, E. & McCann, P. (2013) The economic performance of European cities and city regions: Myths and realities, European Planning Studies, 21(3), pp. 334–354] claims that second-rank cities have in fact outperformed first-rank cities, becoming the main driving forces in national economic performance. In the debate that emphasizes the role of second-rank cities in national growth, a simplified view of the role of agglomeration economies is provided; they are taken for granted in small- and medium-sized cities and only in large cities will the problem of a downturn in urban returns to scale emerge. In this paper, a more complex view is assumed, claiming that the oversimplified interpretation ...
111 citations
TL;DR: Since the industrialization of Europe and North America in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, traditional models of urban growth emphasized the expansion of jobs in the manufacturing industry as discussed by the authors, which was not the case in most of the early twenty-first century.
Abstract: Since the industrialization of Europe and North America in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, traditional models of urban growth emphasized the expansion of jobs in the manufacturing ind...
110 citations
TL;DR: A great number of contributions regarding shrinking cities correspond to generic discourses on urban problems, which cover planning policies with approaches and strategies developed in somewhat diverse or even very different urban contexts as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: A great number of contributions regarding shrinking cities correspond to generic discourses on urban problems, which cover planning policies with approaches and strategies developed in somewhat diverse or even very different urban contexts. The debate on shrinkage is still feeble and fragmented. Perhaps this is owing to the character of shrinkage or its relative novelty. An explicit, unequivocal, and comprehensive theoretical debate and framework on the topic of planning for shrinkage is lacking. This entails a previous reflection about what shrinkage means or should mean, the role of urban and regional planning, and the contradictions of planning for shrinkage, which cause the paradox of planning for shrinkage. How can planning deal with shrinkage? What should policies for shrinkage look like? Is planning for shrinkage, planning for population decrease? Is it managing population decrease? Is it business as usual: planning to resume growth? What does managing shrinkage mean? The paper presents a t...
108 citations
TL;DR: The authors discusses the key ideas and arguments put forward by the main protagonists of this approach and identifies several missing elements, such as indifference to place-specific factors, neglect of multi-scalar impacts and underappreciation of the role of human agency.
Abstract: The past two decades have witnessed an ever-growing scholarly interest in regional clusters. The focus of research has mainly been on exploring why clusters exist and what characteristics “functioning” clusters possess. Although the interest in more dynamic views on clusters is not new, in recent years, however, greater attention has been paid to providing better explanations of how clusters change and develop over time, giving rise to an increasing popularity of the cluster life-cycle approach. This paper discusses the key ideas and arguments put forward by the main protagonists of this approach and identifies several missing elements, such as indifference to place-specific factors, neglect of multi-scalar impacts and underappreciation of the role of human agency. Based on this critical assessment, a number of suggestions for future research are made. We argue that there is a need to study the influence of the wider regional environment on cluster evolution and to explore how cluster development ...
99 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors introduce indicators of regional related variety and unrelated variety to overcome the current impasse in the specialization-diversity debate in agglomeration economics, and test empirically for the significance of variables based on these concepts, using a cross-sectional data set for 205 European regions during the period 2000-2010.
Abstract: This paper introduces indicators of regional related variety and unrelated variety to conceptually overcome the current impasse in the specialization-diversity debate in agglomeration economics. Although various country-level studies have been published on this conceptualization in recent years, a pan-European test has been missing from the literature until now. A pan-European test is more interesting than country-level tests, as newly defined cohesion policies, smart-specialization policies, place-based development strategies and competitiveness policies may be especially served by related variety and unrelated variety conceptualizations. We test empirically for the significance of variables based on these concepts, using a cross-sectional data set for 205 European regions during the period 2000–2010. The results confirming our hypotheses are that related variety is significantly related to employment growth, especially in small and medium-sized city-regions, and that specialization is significan...
TL;DR: In this article, bibliometric methods are used to analyze cluster literature published between 1957 and 2014 in order to explore prospective research priorities through the method of bibliographic coupling, which shifts the focus away from the practice of analyzing co-citations and seminal contributions to one of looking at current and emerging trends in the literature.
Abstract: The industrial district and cluster literature has generated an extraordinary quantity of articles, debates, and topics for discussion, and encompasses one of the most vibrant lines of research in the field of economics, geography, management and related disciplines. The literature, however, is fairly fragmented. In this paper, bibliometric methods are used to analyze cluster literature published between 1957 and 2014 in order to explore prospective research priorities through the method of bibliographic coupling. Beyond focusing on foundational works in the past, this approach shifts the focus away from the practice of analyzing co-citations and seminal contributions to one of looking at current and emerging trends in the literature. Using the ISI-Web of Knowledge (Web of Science) as a database, examination of two samples of 3,955 and 2,419 articles is made. Results reveal the existence of sub-fields of inquiry that are following their own particular research agendas, which remain distinct yet interconnected to one another.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyze urban policy mobilities taking into consideration the idea of the smart city, which is currently a sort of leitmotif used in many cities within the framework of discourses on urban development.
Abstract: This article analyses urban policy mobilities taking into consideration the idea of the smart city, which is currently a sort of leitmotif used in many cities within the framework of discourses on urban development. More specifically, this article offers an analysis concerning the circulation and implementation of the idea of the smart city in Turin, Italy. It investigates the actors, processes and networks involved in the mobilization and reproduction of the idea, as well as the mechanisms, concerning the embedding of the smart city discourse in the institutional fabric of the city of Turin, Italy. It also emphasizes how urban policy mobility can develop even without processes of “imitation” and “adaptation” of best practices from other cities.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show the levels of local and regional embeddedness of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (GMB) as well as its effects on the position of the city within global networks.
Abstract: This paper aims to show the levels of local and regional embeddedness of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (GMB) as well as its effects on the position of Bilbao within global networks. Although it is often said that the GMB as an international art franchise did not fit well with the local traditions, values and culture of Bilbao and the Basque Country, this paper attempts to show that the GMB is quite embedded into the local and regional context of institutions, private agents and policies. This effect increases with the growing recognition of the potential effects of the GMB on the creative and service industry in the Bilbao region. On the other hand, there is also an increasing tendency for Bilbao and the GMB to be included in global networks, as can be demonstrated by the branding effect of the GMB on the attraction of tourists or the increasing importance of the term “Bilbao” in semantic networks. The authors conclude with some recommendations on strengthening both the regional embeddedness and th...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the complex relations between spatial planning and its cultural context (including the specific socio-economic patterns and related cultural norms, values, traditions and attitudes) and analyze the extent to which spatial planning adapts to external pressures such as Europeanization.
Abstract: This article examines the complex relations between spatial planning and its cultural context (including the specific socio-economic patterns and related cultural norms, values, traditions and attitudes). To be able to analyze the extent to which spatial planning adapts to external pressures such as Europeanization, a “culturized planning model” with the three dimensions “planning artefacts”, “planning environment” and “societal environment” is used. It can be observed that the “harmonization” of spatial planning practices can result from external pressures such as EU regulations as well as (horizontal) collective learning processes. However, “harmonization” does not necessarily result in convergence. Adaptational pressures such as Europeanization often result in the customization of existing structures, frames and policies (“planning artefacts” and “planning environment”) but do not fundamentally change the underlying core cultural traits (“societal environment”). These cultural traits are quite ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the contribution that second-tier cities can and do make to the economic performance of national economies across Europe and present evidence that decentralizing responsibilities, powers and resources, spreading investment and encouraging high performance in a range of cities rather than concentrating on the capital city produces national benefits.
Abstract: This article discusses the contribution that second-tier cities can and do make to the economic performance of national economies across Europe. It reviews the competing theories about size, investment and economic performance. It presents a range of evidence about the performance of over 150 European capital and second-tier cities in 31 countries. It identifies some key policy messages for local national and European policy-makers. It presents evidence that decentralizing responsibilities, powers and resources, spreading investment and encouraging high performance in a range of cities rather than concentrating on the capital city produces national benefits. It argues that in a period of austerity national governments should resist pressures to concentrate investment in capital cities and invest more in second-tier cities when there is evidence that: (i) the gap with capitals is large and growing (ii) the business infrastructure of second-tier cities is weak because of national underinvestment and...
TL;DR: In this article, four different approaches to legitimacy are derived: accountability, inclusiveness, liberty and fairness, and the authors conclude that strategic urban planning must find a balance between these four approaches.
Abstract: In Finnish, Swedish and Norwegian cities and urban regions, strategic approaches in urban planning have been developed by introducing different kinds of informal strategic plans. The means of improving the strategic quality of urban and regional planning have thus been searched from outside the statutory land use planning system, determined by the national planning laws. Similar development has also taken place elsewhere. When strategic plans are prepared outside the statutory planning system, these processes also lack the legal guarantee for openness, fairness and accountability. This is a serious legitimacy problem. In this article, the problem is examined theoretically and conceptually by combining democracy- and governance-theoretical perspectives. With this framework, four different approaches to legitimacy are derived: accountability, inclusiveness, liberty and fairness. The article concludes that strategic urban planning must find a balance between the four approaches to legitimacy. Concern...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss key meta-theoretical presuppositions for urban planning to be possible and meaningful, pointing at critical realism as a fruitful philosophical position for research within urban planning and urban studies.
Abstract: The paper discusses key meta-theoretical presuppositions for urban planning to be possible and meaningful, pointing at critical realism as a fruitful philosophical position for research within urban planning and urban studies. For ontological reasons, critical realism considers that interdisciplinary integration is necessary to arrive at valid knowledge, whereas competing positions such as positivism and poststructuralism tend to neglect important parts of reality. Critical realism acknowledges the independent causal powers of both agents and structures and thus provides a suitable platform for investigating causal relationships between social conditions, spatial urban structures and the actions of agents (including those of planners). Moreover, a critical realist view on the possibilities of research-based predictions squares well with the qualitative impact assessments of alternative solutions and the modest, context-adapted estimates of magnitudes of effects typical within urban planning.
TL;DR: The knowledge base concept in the past was often applied in its pure form, i.e. it was assumed that there are dominant knowledge bases in particular sectors and firms shaping knowledge and innovation processes and related networks.
Abstract: The knowledge base concept in the past was often applied in its “pure form”, i.e. it was assumed that there are dominant knowledge bases in particular sectors and firms shaping knowledge and innovation processes and related networks. For “analytical sectors” such as biotech, it has been argued that codified knowledge generated by universities and R&D organizations is the key for innovation, whereas “synthetic sectors” such as machinery innovate more incrementally by recombining existing knowledge often drawn from suppliers or service firms. Empirical literature has partly confirmed these patters, but also shown more complex knowledge processes. More recently it has been argued that combinations of different knowledge bases might enhance the innovation performance of firms. For example in “analytical sectors”, firms might benefit not just from new and basic knowledge generated by research, but also from recombining existing and applied knowledge or by drawing on symbolic knowledge. Combinatorial kn...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide a conceptual and argumentative framework for studying how Area-based Initiatives (ABIs) can facilitate contact between networks in deprived neighbourhoods and external forms of power (linking social capital).
Abstract: In this article, we provide a conceptual and argumentative framework for studying how Area-based Initiatives (ABIs) can facilitate contact between networks in deprived neighbourhoods and external forms of power (linking social capital). These relations provide the residents and other members of civil society with crucial access to leveraging resources, ideas and information. Although few studies on linking social capital have been carried out in relation to urban regeneration, there is empirical evidence that suggests that it can play a positive role in establishing trust and relations between civil society and a municipality. We set out with a review of how social capital literature has been applied in an urban context, and then demonstrate empirical examples from Denmark of how, in different contexts (village, town and city), ABIs have facilitated processes that generated different forms of social capital (bridging, bonding and linking). The article concludes that ABIs contribute to creating lin...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce the concept of institutional layers in order to analyse the interdependencies between institutions of different types and spatial scales, and to investigate institutional change processes in a regional context.
Abstract: The overall objective of this paper is to better understand regional change from institutional and economic perspectives. The paper introduces the concept of institutional layers in order to analyse the interdependencies between institutions of different types and spatial scales, and to investigate institutional change processes in a regional context. It suggests that the diversity and connectedness of institutional layers are key dimensions for explaining economic evolution in regions. Based on these two dimensions, the paper introduces a typology of regions and relates this typology to economic evolution and growth as well as the likelihood of fragmentation, lock-ins and disruptive changes.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify different innovation modes and their territorial embeddedness, relating them to firms' innovative and economic performance, and analyse the relationship between the different innovative modes and the economic impact of the crisis on firms' performance.
Abstract: This paper seeks to identify different innovation modes and their territorial embeddedness, relating them to firms’ innovative and economic performance. We also analyse the relationship between the different innovation modes and the economic impact of the crisis on firms’ performance. These relationships are tested by regression and latent class models for the Portuguese population of firms, using a sample of 397 firms classified according to technological intensity, size and region. Our results show three different innovation modes: a DUI (Doing, Using and Interacting) mode, an STI (Science, Technology and Innovation) mode and a TEI (Territorial Embeddedness Innovation) mode in which territory plays a key role. These innovative modes are related in different ways to firms’ economic and innovative performance and also have marked distinctions in terms of resilience to the economic crisis. These findings lead to a reflection on regional innovation policy in the European context.
TL;DR: In this paper, the evolution of the biogas industry in the region of Scania in Southern Sweden is studied, and the authors study the role of the region-specific institutions in this process.
Abstract: According to some scholars in evolutionary economic geography (EEG), the role of (territory-specific) institutions is relatively small for explaining where a new industry emerges and grows as firms develop routines in a path-dependent and idiosyncratic manner. This article evaluates this assertion by studying the evolution of the biogas industry in the region of Scania in Southern Sweden. The biogas is predominantly used as a fuel in the regional transport system and is considered as a crucial means to achieve environmental goals in the region. Recently, regional public policy has been actively promoting this biogas industry, aiming for cluster development. Drawing on literature from EEG and technological innovation systems, this article seeks to unpack the evolutionary process that has led to the emergence of this industry. In particular, it studies to what extent territory-specific institutions have been crucial in that respect. The analysis is case-based, drawing predominantly on in-depth inter...
TL;DR: In this article, Bratislava and Vienna are analyzed as two European cities that recently decided to jointly approach metropolitan development, while their contextual conditions and development trajectories differ significantly, and it is shown upon an indicator-based analysis that the two are in different phases of the metropolization process.
Abstract: In this paper we aim to enhance the prevailing structural perspective on metropolization by pointing to the mutual relationship between the processes of metropolization and polycentric development. We claim that a processual view is needed to emphasize the temporal dependencies between different layers of polycentricity, and to reveal that European city–regions are situated in different stages of polycentric metropolitan development (PMD). To illustrate this empirically, we first analyse Bratislava and Vienna as two European city–regions that recently decided to jointly approach metropolitan development, while their contextual conditions and development trajectories differ significantly. It is shown upon an indicator-based analysis that the two are in different phases of the metropolization process. Confronting this evidence with stakeholder assessments of the need for strategic intervention in metropolitan development further uncovers the importance of the strategic dimension in metropolitan rese...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on small postsocialist towns in Estonia and Central Germany that have mostly experienced severe shrinkage since the end of state socialism, especially during the first transition decade, and clarify to what extent local planning strategies accept the ongoing shrinkage and how various forms of local social capital have contributed to these strategies and the development of the localities in general.
Abstract: Population shrinkage has become an unavoidable process in many cities and calls for new planning approaches. Typically, economic restructuring causes small urban centres in peripheral locations to lose economic functions and population. In small towns however, social capital has been considered as a specific resource. In this article, we focus on small postsocialist towns in Estonia and Central Germany that have mostly experienced severe shrinkage since the end of state socialism, especially during the first transition decade. We aim to clarify to what extent local planning strategies accept the ongoing shrinkage and how various forms of local social capital have contributed to these strategies and the development of the localities in general. Interviews with different stakeholders in selected towns in Estonia and Germany revealed that shrinkage has not been systematically accepted in local planning. Instead, planning is strongly steered by the external financial resources to strengthen the remain...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors draw from resilience theories that focus on the ability of communities to react to abrupt as well as slowly occurring disturbances, and identify mechanisms for resilience in a small city in Finland.
Abstract: In order to theorize the phenomenon of urban shrinkage, the paper draws from resilience theories that focus on the ability of communities to react to abrupt as well as slowly occurring disturbances. Mechanisms for resilience are defined and identified. The empirical case study is a peripherally located small city in Finland. It is a specific feature for shrinking cities in Finland that many of them, now facing the challenge of population decline, have grown to be economically dependent on the utilization and processing of natural resources, most importantly timber and minerals. Recent transformations in the global division of labour have caused employment opportunities to decline, resulting in out-migration and ageing. Due to lack of a general regional policy dealing with this issue, these cities and settlements now have to find individual strategies to adapt to these wider-scale transformations. Nevertheless, these communities have faced such situations previously and, therefore, it is possible t...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors concluded that a suitable policy response consists of the acceptance of shrinkage, developing a long-term view on the problem of selective migration in the south of the Netherlands.
Abstract: Once a flourishing mining area, Parkstad Limburg in the south of the Netherlands is now facing limited economic vitality and structural changes in its demographic composition. In a process of selective migration, young and highly educated people tend to move out of the region, while elderly and less- educated people stay. Shrinkage in Parkstad Limburg has resulted in a declining basis for economic activity, an unbalanced housing market, and policy responses in order to deal with these phenomena. Unfortunately acceptance of the phenomenon is a difficult step and a time-consuming process. While after years of denial most politicians and policy-makers in Parkstad Limburg have finally accepted the decline, the inhabitants of the region have to be confronted with inconvenient decisions like demolishing houses and the closure of public facilities. Based on the findings in Parkstad Limburg, it is concluded that a suitable policy response consists of the acceptance of shrinkage, developing a long-term vis...
TL;DR: In this paper, the so-called pentagon model and regime analysis were used to identify the critical factors for sustainable development scenarios in rural areas, and a set of sustainable development scenario was developed.
Abstract: In many countries, rural areas have shown a new spatial-economic dynamics that have meant a contrast with the traditional urban-rural dichotomy. In particular, the need to use economic-ecological sustainability as a guiding principle for new rural development is a prominent feature. But how will rural areas, sometimes suffering from lack of economic development, peripheral positions and relatively low social well-being be able to face new challenges? Can they be attractive, innovative and developed (“hot spots”) while maintaining their sustainability and continuity? This question was the background in conducting our research. Hence, this study aims to answer this question in three steps, namely (i) offering a contemporary overview, (ii) identifying the critical factors for and (iii) developing a set of sustainable development scenarios. In order to reach our aims, we applied the so-called pentagon model and used multi-criteria analysis, namely regime analysis. The data and information deployed in ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the theoretical and empirical issues of territorial capital were discussed and some critical remarks related to the topic were made, and a comprehensive overview of empirical investigations by comparing the applied methods, dimensions and variables of the territorial capital was presented.
Abstract: Territorial capital has gained considerable attention in the past few years. The aim with this work is to throw light on some underlying aspects of territorial capital research. The study focuses on the theoretical and empirical issues of territorial capital and highlights some critical remarks related to the topic. On the one hand, the focus of the study is on the comparison of concepts and approaches in connection with territorial capital; then an in-depth look is taken at “capital frameworks” related to the research field. On the other hand, a comprehensive overview is presented of empirical investigations by comparing the applied methods, dimensions and variables of territorial capital. An argument is also made for a critical assessment concerning the topic with regard to the sense and function of territorial capital in regional economics and local economic development and highlights some further dilemmas concerning the “properties of capital” and “territorial capital paradigm”. Finally, some ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors systematically compared the patterns of global networks in the information and communications technology industry in a selection of European, Chinese and Indian regions and found that GINs are more common in regions which are not organizationally and institutionally thick.
Abstract: Access to global innovation networks (GINs) has been unequal across the regions of the world. While certain regions are considered knowledge hubs in GINs, others still remain marginalized; this points to the role of regional innovation systems (RISs) in the emergence and development of GINs. Using firm-level data collected through a survey and case studies in 2009–2010, this paper systematically compares the patterns of global networks in the information and communications technology industry in a selection of European, Chinese and Indian regions. The results show that GINs are more common in regions which are not organizationally and institutionally thick, suggesting that GINs may be a compensatory mechanism for weaknesses in the RIS.