Clusters and Sustainable Regional Development: A Meta-organisational Approach

Clusters and Sustainable Regional Development conceptualises the role of organised clusters in the transition towards sustainability. It introduces a novel perspective on these clusters, viewing them as deliberate collective actors within their environments that can become the driving force for transformation in their regions or nations.

The book draws upon the meta-organisational perspective in cluster studies, in contrast to traditional approaches. This view suggests that clusters are not merely territories or geographical areas, but organised entities. As such, they are defined as territorially anchored groups of independent organisations engaging in joint decision-making, pursuing system-level goals and capable of purposive collective action.

This text introduces a new set of ideas and questions at the intersection of economic geography, regional and cluster studies, organisation and management, policy and governance research. It will appeal to researchers from these diverse fields seeking to further develop the meta-organisational view of clusters as well as conceptualise their role in sustainability transitions.

This book will also be a useful guide for policymakers who have an interest in the dynamics of economic development and the transition towards sustainability.

Evgeniya Lupova-Henry is Lecturer in Creative Business at the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, the Netherlands. She holds a PhD in Management from the University of Neuchatel in Switzerland. In her research, she explores topics at the intersection of management, organisation, and innovation studies with a particular focus on ‘non-traditional’ forms of organisations such as meta-organisations. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6599-7070

Nicola Francesco Dotti, independent scholar, Brussels, Belgium, was Senior Researcher in Regional Economics and Policy Studies at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). Among his main research interests are knowledge for policymaking, science policy, and the EU Cohesion Policy. In 2021, he moved to Science Europe as Senior Policy Officer working on the Green and Digital Transitions. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1029-173X