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This volume highlights the importance of interactive, practice-based learning as a means to promote more thorough innovation dynamics in regional and national economies. Successful experiences in Scandanavia and southern European countries are examined, with insightful policy lessons extracted from each case.

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Introduction PART I: THEORETICAL INSIGHTS FROM THE LITERATURE ON STI AND DUI Innovation and Competence Building in the Learnign Economy: Implications for Innovation Policy; B. Lundvall & E. Lorenz Labour Market Institutions, Skills, and Innovation Style: a Critique of the Varieties of Capitalism perspective; E. Lorenz Organization and Innovation: The Topic of Creative Cities; B. Johnson The Knowledge Economy, Spillovers, Proximity and Specialisation; P. Cooke PART II: CLUSTERS, FIRMS AND INNOVATION SYSTEMS Combined and Complex Mode of Innovation in Regional Cluster Development: Analysis of the light-weight Material Cluster in Raufoss, Norway; A. Isaksen & J. Karlsen Facilitating Cluster Evolution in Peripheral Regions: the Role of Clusterpreneurs; J. Christensen & D. Stoerring Social Capital, Knowledge and Competitiveness: the case of the Basque Paper Cluster and the Electronics and ICT Cluster; J. Valdaliso, M. Aranguren, A. Elola & S. López Firm Heterogeneity and Trajectories of Learning: Applications and Relevant Policy Implications; M. Aranguren, M. Larrea & M. Parrilli Innovation Capabilities and Learning as Arguments to Support R&D in Enterprises: Virtuous and Vicious Cycles; J. Hejis Typologies of Innovation Based on Statistical Analysis for European and Spanish Regions; M. Navarro & J. Gibaja Academia and Public Policy: Towards the Co-generation of Kowledge and Learning Processes; M. Aranguren, M. Larrea & J. Wilson

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BJÖRN T. ASHEIM is Professor and Chair in Economic Geography at the Department of Human Geography, and Director at CIRCLE (Centre for Innovation, Research and Competence in the Learning Economy), Lund University, Sweden. He is an internationally renowned researcher within economic geography and regional innovation studies. In addition to numerous journal articles he has edited books on SMEs and Regional Innovation Policy (2003) and Clusters and regional development (2006).

MARIO DAVIDE PARRILLI is Associate Professor in Economics andDirector of PhD in Economics and Business Studies at the University of Deusto, Bilbao and San Sebastian, Spain,and Senior Research Fellow at the Basque Institute of Competitiveness, San Sebastian.He has been working on small and medium-sized enterprise development for many years as well as on territorial development, innovation systems and social capital. He has recently published SME cluster development (2007), and High-Technology, productivity and networks (2008).

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