Regions and cities are the natural loci where knowledge is created, and where it can be easily turned into a commercial product. Regions are territories where, under certain socio-economic conditions, a strong sense of belonging and mutual trust develops the ability to transform information and inventions into innovation and productivity increases, through cooperative or market interaction. Especially in contexts characterised by a plurality of agents — such as cities or industrial districts — knowledge is the result of cooperative learning processes, nourished by spatial proximity, network relations, interaction, creativity and recombination capability.

This book explains the logic behind these interactions and cooperative attitudes in regions and cities. One of the most significant channels comes from the presence of a university and its collaboration with firms and scientific research centres. These mutual relations between academic institutions and enterprises are of key importance.

The significance of universities in driving economic well being and regional development has been well documented for some time now. Much of the research, however, has centred upon countries in Western Europe and the United States. Increasingly, and since the expansion of the European Union in 2004 in particular, themes of academic entrepreneurship, university-business links, knowledge and innovation have become important on a Europe-wide scale. This book draws together key thinkers from across the continent to analyze the importance of higher educational institutions in fostering development.

Contents

Introduction: Knowledge regions and the role of innovation in times of economic crisis (Stavros A. Zenios) Part One: Regional Roles of Universities in National and International Contexts 1. The Civic University (John Goddard) 2. Which Innovation Policies for the European Regions? (Roberta Capello) 3. The innovation process of European regions (Malgorzata Runiewicz Wardyn) 4.ities as Knowledge Nodes in open Innovation Systems (Suntje Schmidt) 5. Regional cooperation or external links? (Agnieszka Olechnicka) 6. What do you offer?: Interlinkages of universities and high-technology companies in science and technology parks in Berlin and Seville (Sascha Brinkhoff) 7. Relations between international research collaboration, the scientific production and impact of research at Polish universities (Krzysztof Klincewicz) Part Two: Universities and Innovation-driven Development 8. The ‘Adaptive’ University (Jan Sadlak) 9. The Second Coming of the Triple Helix (Martin Meyer) 10. Bringing university knowledge to market (Marina van Geenhuizen) 11. The Academic Entrepreneur (Attila Varga) 12. The Third Role of Universities (Pavla Zizalova and Vladislav Cadil) 13. Entrepreneurial universities, entrepreneurial students (José Luis Vázquez, Ana Lanero and María Purificación García) 14. Role of university medicine in an innovation netw...