NTUA Professor Mr. Giannis Kalogirou attended the InSySPo International Conference to be held on June 6-7, 2018 at the University of Campinas, Brazil. The theme of the conference was: “Innovation Ecosystems, Technology Upgrading and Regional Development”. Mr. Giannis Kalogirou addressed the issues of Social Inclusion, Regional Employment Dynamics, Culture, Local Knowledge.

The text of NTUA Professor G. Kalogirou’s presentation can be found here (pdf file).

The conference provided information on these complex questions, examining a range of topics and focusing on evidence and lessons for emerging economies. Among other things, the possibility of knowledge entrepreneurship to include both small business firms and corporate entrepreneurship in established operators, which are of great importance for emerging economies, was examined. More specifically, the main thematic sections were:

1. Business demography: birth/entry, survival, death/exit, growth. Geography
of knowledge-intensive businesses.

Factors contributing to the dispersion of demographic business activities across regions/countries: quality of local governance, research and development spending, workforce education, business-friendly regulations, financing constraints. Emphasis on knowledge-intensive businesses.

2. Barriers to innovation for small businesses. Spatial specificities.

The literature has identified a long list of potential economic and non-economic barriers to innovation, such as excessive risk, high innovation costs, lack of financing, organizational rigidity, lack of skilled personnel, lack of IT, insufficient market information, , standards and lack of technical services. These barriers affect the impact on innovation of firm-specific factors (size, R&D expenditure, knowledge acquisition and adaptation), network-related factors (external sources of financing and information, public procurement, tax breaks and subsidies).

3. Regional innovation ecosystem, smart specialization, global value chains (GVC)

Scholars have highlighted the importance of interactions between elements of a business system. Undoubtedly, entrepreneurship needs to be studied at the regional level and in close proximity to regional innovation systems, with an emphasis on networks, learning, interactions, as well as the strong links of local actors and international actors, such as multinational corporations. The rapid expansion of global value chains in recent decades introduces a particularly important element to be examined. Significant areas of ambiguity remain, however, such as understanding the institutional framework of interactions, including the role of universities and public research institutions. Smart specialisation has emerged as a location-based approach to analysing the strengths and potential of an economy and identifying strategic areas for policy intervention.

4. Social inclusion. Regional employment dynamics, culture, local knowledge

The concept of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) has been promoted to indicate a broader inclusion in research and innovation activities. Social actors – researchers, citizens, policy makers, businesses, third sector organisations, others – are supposed to work together to ensure a better alignment of R&I outcomes with the values, needs and expectations of society. Regions often demonstrate their own dynamics, culture, historical background and educational achievements, which could play a useful role in informing public policy on research, innovation and socio-economic development.

For more information about the conference, visit the official website by clicking here.

The official conference programme can be found here (pdf file).