Beyond Innovation Hotspots: Clusters for Competitiveness and Transformation in Real Regions

This expertly edited book investigates the role of specific clusters and cluster policies for the competitiveness and development of regions facing stagnation and decline, or the challenges of catching up or transforming their economic structures.

Bringing together a team of skilled contributors, Beyond Innovation Hotspots demonstrates the importance of context-specific policy responses and effective institutional frameworks to enhance regional development. Chapters examine key case studies from Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany and Central Europe, to illustrate the complexity and diversity of challenges faced by different regions and the strategies used to address them. Particular attention is paid to the question of how clusters and cluster policies can help these regions to maintain or regain their competitiveness in the face of the twin changes of digitalisation and sustainability.

Scholars and students of cluster policy research, economic geography, entrepreneurship, urban and regional economics, and technological change and innovation will find the book a crucial resource. It is also beneficial to regional policymakers and practitioners looking to design, implement and evaluate their own strategies. Additionally, local stakeholders in clusters can use the lessons in this book for the development of their own organisations.

Edited by Matthias Kiese, Professor of Human Geography (Urban and Regional Economics), Institute of Geography, Ruhr University Bochum, Rasmus C. Beck, CEO, Duisburg Business and Innovation and Honorary Professor of Urban Transformation, EBZ Business School, Dirk Fornahl, Professor of Regional Economics, University of Bremen, Germany and Christian Ketels, Senior Fellow, House of Governance, Stockholm School of Economics, Sweden