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Regional issues in Ireland, although a relatively small and geographically homogenous country, attract considerable attention, much of which centres on the size of Dublin and the South East and its perceived dominant share of the national economy. Using location quotients ( LQs) analysis and linking the production multipliers to their two digit NACE codes, this paper presents the first exploration of possible regional industrial specialization in related sectors in Ireland at the NUTS 2 level. Linking the production multipliers with NACE codes by region allows one to explore whether potential region specialization is associated with Jacobian externalities in Ireland. Using a relatively novel LQ approach, and a cut-off value of 1.25 or above as an indicator of industrial specialization and clustering, this paper found that in the Border, Midlands West ( BMW) region and the South East region, 29 and 32 sectors respectively had LQ greater than the cut-off value of 1.25. In terms of Jacobian externalities, this paper found businesses in related sectors; particularly finance and insurance and transport and telecommunications are more likely to cluster in the BMW region. From a policy perspective this would indicate that there may be a role for the Regional Assemblies, particularly the Assembly for the BMW region to help develop and co-ordinate regional industrial policy in Ireland. From a regional science perspective, this paper adds empirical evidence to the literature on Jacobian and related variety in regional economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the mechanism of locally induced innovation activities in the field of renewable energy technologies ( RET). A panel data analysis from 1998 to 2007 across 20 Italian regions identifies the primary drivers of renewable energy patenting activity. As expected, the localised stock of knowledge, local researchers and regional public research subsidies contribute significantly to the development of innovation activities. Additionally, regional characteristics, such as regional energy dependence and hydroelectric resources, are effective in determining the RET innovation patterns. Specifically, regional hydroelectric power acts as a substitute input and hence hampers the innovation activities in the field of RET. Finally, RET innovation activities depend to a limited extent on the political orientation of regional councils, thereby confirming prior research on the role of social acceptance of and political support for technology development. Highlighting the role of local resources and local policies for RET innovation activities, the present research has potential implications for economies that strive to become more self-reliant and less import intensive in the knowledge sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A great deal of regional research has focused on the innovation-competitiveness-growth chain, which is implicit in territorial innovation models ( TIMs). TIMs literature has neglected or subordinated social and ecological regional conditions. This research adopts a broader perspective by: ( i) studying an interscalar intergovernmental network aimed at meeting tridimensional sustainable development ( SD) goals; and ( ii) showing why this arrangement is successful. The network members are the regional government and provincial councils, which act as network promoters, and the municipalities. We model the network as a platform for integrating both pre-existing idiosyncratic resources and emergent resources/benefits that come from rich and regular interactions (in the shape of learning, enjoyment, reputation, identification, and attitude towards citizen participation); resources integration leads to network member satisfaction. This view is supported by data concerning a network in a Spanish autonomous community (region), Castile- La Mancha. We see this study as a first step towards more systematic research on what might be termed 'territorial sustainability models'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]