Innovation Districts

Abstract

This entry aims to clarify the origin and development of the notion of innovation districts. The definition includes the recognition of the debate around two of the most relevant concepts in the management and economic geography fields: those of industrial districts and clusters. The content spans from the Marshallian echo to the Porterian view and up to the most recent conceptualization of territorial agglomerations, which assigns a crucial role to the complex system of interactions between district firms and external organizations. Innovation processes in districts are triggered by the international exposure of local firms, by networking abilities, and by knowledge recombination, which also allow firms to face periods of global crisis, enhancing the resilience capacity of innovation districts. Finally, a discussion of the most common measures of the innovation performance of districts closes the entry.