SÉMINAIRE DE RECHERCHE EN ÉCONOMIE - GATE LYON SAINT-ÉTIENNE : RON BOSCHMA

Ron Boschma, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Utrecht University, the Netherlands,UiS Business School, University of Stavanger, Norway , présentera un séminaire intitulé : The Dark Side of the Geography of Innovation : Relatedness, Complexity, and Regional Inequality in Europe.

Résumé / abstract  : As regions evolve, their economies become more complex, and they tend to diversify into related activities. Although there is a bright side to this diversification process in terms of economic development, there may also be a dark side to it, as it possibly contributes to regional inequalities. The paper uses data on industries and patents to analyze the diversification patterns of 283 regions in 32 European countries over the past 15 years. We find that only the most economically advanced regions have the opportunity to diversify into highly complex activities. These regions tend to focus on related complex activities, while lagging regions focus on related low-complex activities, creating a spatial inequality feedback loop. This pattern creates a wicked problem for innovation policy : the strategy needed to improve innovativeness of the European knowledge system might disproportionately benefit regions that are already developed and foster disparities.

 Co-authors : Flavio L. Pinheiro,, Pierre-Alexandre Balland and Dominik Hartman.

Ron Boschma