Evolution of the Regional Innovation System in Emilia-Romagna
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2022 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS OF THE 3RD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE ECONOMICS OF DECOUPLING, ICED 2022 |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZldBhSaEzXm6VOvdljhPgn3ye_VeG5th/view |
| Keywords | region innovation system; innovation policy; Emilia-Ro- magna; industrial districts |
| Description | The Emilia-Romagna region located in Italy represents one of the most developed regions in the European Union. This region shows a high innovation score and a favourable institution environment for entrepre- neurship and investments. The objective of this article is to discuss the evolution of the regional innovation system in Emilia-Romagna and its transformation from a well-known model of industrial districts (model of products’ decentralization and social integration as firstly defined by Brusco (1982)) to a more holistic and systematic regional approach to the innovation and industrial policy. The article will focus on the role played by regional innovation actors and regional government after 2000 and specifically after the economic crisis which harmed the traditional above mentioned Emilian model. The economic crisis streamlined the already recorded problems of SMEs in the region – its lack of competitiveness with industries specialized in traditional sectors and deficiency in adjust- ment to globalisation having no intention to structuralize. The innovation policy in Emilia-Romagna has been able to transform the region beyond the traditional Brusco model. The innovation policy has been focusing on enhancing globalized medium-sized enterprises by improving produc- tion and innovation as well as strengthening its internationalization. The article will analyse the region’s actions such as the establishment of the ASTER consortium, the Spinner project, business groups initiatives, cre- ating designed innovation policy aiming at structural adaption of SMEs and their upgrading to new product innovation and research. The article also examines the national-level policy initiatives such as the High-Tech Emilia-Romagna Network as the innovation policy in Italy is fragmented. Furthermore, the Emilia-Romagna innovation policy will be analysed in a way that allowed the regional innovation policy to evolve industrial dis- tricts into technological districts focusing on high-tech sectors. Industrial districts were shown to be efficient in the past, but the necessary adaptation to new influences was needed in this case. Concerning its excessive transformation, the article will define best practices made by the regional government and its innovation policy to support, strengthen, and stream- line this transformation. It will mainly focus on the innovation policy tools that can be transferable to other industrial regions facing a similar condi- tion thus preventing its possible lock-ins. |
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