Search

Smart Specialisation is a place-based approach to innovation policy that underpins a significant amount of European Union funding. Following more than six years of implementation, this paper contributes to the evaluation of the Smart Specialisation approach based on the case of Portugal. This is done using the country's main instrument to support corporate Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) that was launched in 2007 and adapted to accommodate Smart Specialisation in 2014. Using aggregate corporate data at NUTS 3 level from 2008 to 2018 and spatial econometric analysis, the results display a positive effect on regional productivity from the RDI subsidies over the two programming periods under analysis (2007 to 2013 and 2014 to 2020), and a higher return of subsidies in the second period, suggesting that Smart Specialisation was able to generate an additional effect. We also found that Smart Specialisation has only been able to generate this additional effect in regional productivity when the Research & Development funding instrument is combined with other types of innovation subsidies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, 'place-based' interventions have become influential in shaping economic development policy, especially at the European level. From the 2007 to 2013 programming period onwards, EU Cohesion policy, adopted a 'place-based' approach to encourage the competitiveness of all regions. Rather than spatially-blind interventions, the focus is on tackling territorial inequalities via a more sophisticated spatially-sensitive approach to stimulate economic change, at the local level. The challenge is that place-based policies are complex, risky and the performance indicators used to capture the achievements from EU Cohesion policy focus on direct results rather than expected policy change, making it hard to prove effectiveness and value for money. This paper contributes to ongoing academic and policy debates about how to capture the achievements of EU Cohesion policy, through an in-depth case study of 'place-based' interventions made via Interreg funding, to encourage cross-border cooperation between Spain and Portugal. The evidence illustrates that there is a need for novel approaches, which are conceptually informed and spatially sensitive to be able to capture not only the quantitative but also the qualitative achievements generated through EU 'place-based' interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban agendas are struggling to challenge conventional planning paradigms, to improve environmental, economic, and social conditions in cities and meet sustainability goals. Such problems call for a critique of existing planning structures, which determine how planners and urban designers work, and thus condition cities themselves. While it is widely acknowledged that descriptive or paradigmatic urban concepts have multiplied in recent years and play a part in shaping development strategies, it is unclear that they reach the desired outcomes. This paper addresses this gap in the case of Portugal, seeking to compare two specific periods of Portuguese planning history: the 1960s and nowadays. For different reasons, both moments urged urban planners and designers to seek urban change. We retrieve key concepts and definitions to call for an observation of how planning at each of those time-periods approached social, political, environmental, and economic challenges. By observing such paradigmatic changes, we aim to identify their advantages and limitations for current urban policies, while gathering eventual lessons for spatial planning to handling the need for a sustainable transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aerospace industry is one of the main drivers of the economies of Portugal and Andalusia (Spain), where it generates more than 30,000 jobs and sales of over 4000 million euros. This study analyses the needs and capacities regarding innovation of companies and R&D centres in the aerospace sector of both regions. 277 entities of Portugal and Andalusia provided valid responses to a questionnaire concerning 107 innovation resources. Regional and cross-border collaboration opportunities have been detected utilizing the survey data. The results show that the productivity and innovation capacity of companies in the sector could increase in both territories through better use of the existing resources. A significant set of identified needs can be addressed by capacities existing in the neighbouring region, which supports the urgency to enhance cross-border collaboration. Additionally, a basis for the prioritization of future investments is provided through the identification of several fields with weak innovation capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]