New avenues for regional innovation systems and policy

Abstract

Regional innovation systems (RISs) have received increasing interest from researchers and policy makers over the past three decades. The interest is driven partly by advances in theoretical analyses, partly by empirical studies of wellfunctioning, successful regional economies, partly by the growing interest in innovation as a source of competitive advantage, and partly by the need for new policies to stimulate job growth and lower regional inequalities. This chapter presents the approach of the book to further improve regional innovation studies. The chapter introduces the content of the three parts of the book; (i) theoretical advances on RIS research, (ii) empirical cases of RIS development, and (iii) discussion of regional innovation policy approaches. The chapter summarises main results from existing work within these three parts and points to how the book explores new avenues for research on RISs and sheds light on issues that have thus far received little attention.