Regions for Economic Change Fostering Smart and Sustainable Growth in Cities and Regions

To achieve smart growth we need to mobilize and maximize the innovation capacity of every region. This is valid for all types of regions: Those that are at the cutting edge of science and competing in global high-tech markets as well as those trailing behind. These latter regions very often have yet to exploit all their opportunities for knowledge based activities and build up their innovation potential, often by adapting existing general purpose technologies driving incremental innovation.

Smart specialization combines a place-based approach with an innovation system logic and a strong outward orientation towards global value chains and their development. Smart specialization is about making the right strategic choices based on hard evidence and consensus-driven processes of stakeholder involvement through what has been called an “entrepreneurial discovery process”. Smart is about making the best possible of the European Research and Innovation area, avoiding duplication and exploiting synergies and cooperation. Smart is also making tough policy choices by focusing scarce public resources in times of austerity.