Quadruple Helix Models for Sustainable Regional Innovation: Engaging and Facilitating Civil Society Participation

Mona Roman,Vladimir Cvijanovic,Henry Varga,Alasdair Reid

doi:10.3390/economies8020048

Mona Roman, Vladimir Cvijanovic + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/economies8020048

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Journal: Economies	Publication Date: Jun 8, 2020
Citations: 40	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences

Abstract

Prior research has emphasized the importance of bringing together quadruple helix (QH) actors (academia, industry, government and civil society) to strengthen regional innovation. The QH model forms an integral part of European innovation policy, which aims to create sustainable and inclusive growth in Europe. As part of this policy, European Union (EU) regions are to design and implement research and innovation strategies for smart specialization (RIS3) through the participatory entrepreneurial discovery process (EDP). Despite the strong emphasis on the QH model, the model is still far from a well-established concept in innovation research and policy, and civil society participation in RIS3 has remained low. Our paper aims to support regional governments to engage with and facilitate the participation of civil society in a territorial EDP based on two case studies from Finland and Sweden. It contributes to the literature on regional innovation systems through identifying mechanisms to foster the QH model and suggests lessons learnt for the operationalization of the QH model as part of RIS3.

Highlights

The regional innovation systems (RIS) approach draws on the literature on Marshallian industrial districts, economic geography, innovative milieux, learning regions, clusters and national systems of innovation
Based on our case studies, we identified various mechanisms that governments can utilize to facilitate the engagement and participation of civil society in territorial entrepreneurial discovery process (EDP), and support the operationalization of the quadruple helix (QH) innovation model
While prior research has identified mechanisms for facilitating interaction between triple helix (TH) stakeholders (Ranga and Etzkowitz 2013), our research contributes to the RIS literature on the mechanisms governments can use to facilitate QH interactions in territorial EDP

Summary

Introduction

The regional innovation systems (RIS) approach draws on the literature on Marshallian industrial districts, economic geography, innovative milieux, learning regions, clusters and national systems of innovation. Prior research has defined RIS as a place in which two sub-systems of actors are engaged in interactive learning: first, a knowledge exploitation sub-system, which consists of mainly firms; second, a knowledge exploration sub-system, which consists of public and private research laboratories, universities and colleges, technology transfer agencies and vocational training organizations (Asheim et al 2019; Cooke et al 1998). These two sub-systems represent the core of the RIS, while

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