Short description:

The existence and persistence of regional disparities between European regions require context-tailored policies to promote structural change. This book explores the congruence between place-based development and regional competitiveness in the EU context.

Long description:

The existence and persistence of regional disparities between European regions require context-tailored policies to promote structural change. This book explores the congruence between place-based development and regional competitiveness in the EU context.

Drawing on a range of social science disciplines, this book unpicks the complexity of regional transformation processes, aiming to enhance the applicability and transferability of theoretical approaches to innovation and place-based regional development in diverse European territorial settings. The contributors have a particular focus on less-favoured regions and on the application of Smart Specialisation ? a strategic approach to innovation-based regional development ? to the issues at hand.

The book comes at a critical moment, meeting the growing demand of academics, practitioners and policymakers with an interest in promoting regional economic growth and well-being.

Table of Contents:

Foreword by Arne Isaksen Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: Unveiling the Potential of Less Favoured Regions in Regional Policy Iryna Kristensen, Alexandre Dubois, Jukka Teräs Part 1 Shifting perspectives: reframing regional innovation in less-favoured regions 2. Fostering Growth in Less Favoured Regions: Adapting the Concept of Smart Specialization to Rural Economic Development David Freshwater 3. Smart Specialisation in Economically and Institutionally Less Favoured Regions Henning Kroll 4. Development of mountainous regions: smart specialization approaches as a means to overcoming peripheralization Thomas Dax Part 2 Smart Specialization in practice: territorial challenges and opportunities 5. Smart specialisation at the edge of Europe: Case study of sparsely populated regions in the Arctic Jukka Teräs, Kristiina Jokelainen, Thomas Ejdemo, Daniel Örtqvist 6. The wisdom of the fathers? Regional Development Policy and Structures for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland (1965-2015) through the lens of Smart Specialisation Andrew Copus 7. The role of biorefineries in the revitalization of (old) industrial rural regions Alexandre Dubois and Iryna Kristensen 8. Models of institutional governance for smart specialization in old industrial urban regions Jaime del Castillo and Jonatan Paton  9. Digital Innovation Hubs as enablers of Smart Specialisation in Sparsely Populated Regions Jens Sörvik Part 3 Operationalising smart diversification 10. Diversification patterns at the regional level and their relationship to regional knowledge capabilities: differences between advanced and less favoured regions Andreas Reinstaller and Fabian Unterlass 11. The Role of Proximity in peripheral regions: smart experimentation between Triple Helix Actors Antti Mäenpää and Seija Virkkala 12. Relatedness, diversification and economic performance at the regional level: differences between advantaged and less favoured regions Johanna Vogel and Stefan Weingärtner 13. Regional structural policies and industrial evolution: evidence from three European case study regions Klaus S. Friesenbichler 14. A Concluding Note: Future prospects of entrepreneurship and innovation policy H?kan Ylinenpää, Iryna Kristensen, Alexandre Dubois, Jukka Teräs