REGIONAL SYSTEMS OF INNOVATION - AN EVOLUTIONARY PERSPECTIVE

The authors develop the concept of regional systems of innovation and relate it to preexisting research on national systems of innovation. T hey argue that work conducted in the 'new regional science' field is c omplementary to systems of innovation approaches. They seek to link ne w regional work to evolutionary economics, and argue for the developme nt of evolutionary regional science. Common elements of interest to ev olutionary innovation research and new regional science are important in understanding processes of agglomeration, trust building, innovatio n, institutions, and learning in regional systems. The authors develop analytical frameworks for designating regional systems of innovation in terms of distinction between institutions and organisations, hard a nd soft infrastructures, and the cultural superstructure. They conclud e that an evolutionary approach assists understanding of regional pote ntial for developing systemic innovation.