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Transitions in Regional Development Policy: Comparative to Competitive Advantage

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Regional Advantage and Innovation

Abstract

This chapter explores the progress of international regional development policy, including new regionalism and the knowledge economy, regional innovation systems, and constructed advantage. The role of SMEs is highlighted in anchoring regional science, and collaboration is examined as an emerging driver of competitive advantage. The text explains the rise of globalisation in shifting the focus of regional science from competitive to comparative advantage, based on the abilities of regional SMEs to operate in the global context. However, the failures of this as a base for regional policy are highlighted, and ‘new regionalism’ is instead explored as a theoretical base to connect globalisation with the knowledge-based economy.

The chapter remarks on the emerging perspective that knowledge is rapidly becoming an important input to economic growth, and that regions can rapidly respond to opportunities presented by the knowledge economy due to their pre-existing social capital and commercial networks. It also provides a critical analysis of new regionalism (NR) theory, its policy implications, and the research questions arising about how NR links with innovation, regional innovation systems, governance and institutional design, and intervention. Finally, the chapter covers the theory of regional innovation systems, including the implementation of regional development platform methods (RDPM) to enhance opportunities for regional enterprises—providing an alternative collaborative business model for defining ‘how regions do business’.

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Acknowledgements

Portions of the above text have been drawn from McCall, T. 2010, Spatial Innovation in Tasmania Constructing Advantage Through Regional Development Platform Methods, Australian Innovation Research Centre, Working Paper Series WP/0510, University of Tasmania, Tasmania; available online at http://www.airc.net.au/extras/693.Spatial%20Innovation%20in%20Tasmania.pdf

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Government, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia

    Dr. Tony McCall (Senior Lecturer)

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  1. Dr. Tony McCall
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Correspondence to Tony McCall .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Centre for Environmental Management, CQUniversity, Bruce Highway, Building 7, North Rockhampton, 4702, Queensland, Australia

    Susan Kinnear

  2. Management Solutions Queensland, Ground Floor, George Street 40, Brisbane, 4001, Queensland, Australia

    Kate Charters

  3. , Southern Cross Business School, Southern Cross University, Lismore, 2480, New South Wales, Australia

    Peter Vitartas

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McCall, T. (2013). Transitions in Regional Development Policy: Comparative to Competitive Advantage. In: Kinnear, S., Charters, K., Vitartas, P. (eds) Regional Advantage and Innovation. Physica, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7908-2799-6_4

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