Innovation and Regional Development

In the globalizing economy, innovation has been widely recognized as a major driver of sustainable economic growth in both developed and developing countries. Regions have become key actors shaping the generation and diffusion of new knowledge and economic evolution. The past decades have witnessed the changing scales and space of innovation, the conceptualization of which involves national innovation systems, sectoral innovation systems, regional innovation systems, and global innovation networks. The significance of proximity for innovation has been changing in the context of open innovation. The empirical experience of innovation and regional development in the West's advanced countries and emerging economies such as China has demonstrated divergent trajectories and patterns.