ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT QUARTERLY
business in particular, to learn new things? Is there
an openness to improvement, to being taught by
outsiders, to keeping up with the changes that are
happening in the economy?
EXAMPLES OF A LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
ECONOMY
Given the factors of a knowledge economy are
the production, distribution and application of
knowledge, let us turn to see how this applies in
practice.
The most straightforward examples are referred
to variously as “knowledge clusters”, “research
parks” and “science and technology precincts”
among other labels. These terms describe a defined
geographical area in which, among its constituent
economic actors, knowledge is created, is allowed
to flow, and is used to develop new products and
processes.
Two other examples are worth reviewing. The first is
“BioTurku”, the Turku Science Park of Finland. The
focus of this cluster is on biotech. It was established
in the early 1990’s with the then understanding that
biotech and pharmaceutical industries were about
to grow rapidly. All of its activities are coordinated
by the business policy company called “Turku
Science Park Ltd”. And this cluster has been well
supported throughout its life through appropriate
government policies and support.
Some key statistics:
• 2 universities and three universities of applied
sciences
• 300 organisations and businesses
• 17,500 employees, 31,000 students, 400
professors
• 210,000m 2 of premises across 11 buildings
• Business presence:
o Bayer production plant, 650 employees
o Also: Flakt Woods, Meyer Werft, Orion
Corporation, Wartsilia
The second example is Sweden’s “Kista Science
City”. Also known as the Stockholm IT Region, it
is the largest ICT cluster in Europe. It was formed
in 1986 when academia, industry and the public
sector formed a collaborative venture called the
“Electrum Foundation”. The Electrum Foundation
runs both the Kista Science City organisation
(which promotes triple-helix collaboration) and The
Stockholm Innovation & Growth organisation (which
is an incubator for high-growth businesses)
Fig 2: Components of The Triple Helix Cluster. (Source: Author)
Another concept that is used to define these places
is the term “Triple Helix Cluster”. A Triple Helix
Cluster is one in which government, academia
and business work together for the common
good. Typically, its where academia produces and
distributes knowledge, where business applies
knowledge, and where government facilitates each
of the three processes.
One of the most famous examples of a local
“knowledge cluster” is Silicon Valley. This San
Francisco-based locale has generated several
trillion dollars of wealth from its activities in the high
technology sector. It is a place where academia (ie.
Stanford University), government (ie. ARPA, NASA,
etc.) and business (ie. Fairchild Semiconductor,
HP, etc.) each played their part and worked
collaboratively for significant and mutually beneficial
outcomes.
Some key statistics:
• 2 universities, with 15 research institutes nearby
• 700 organisations and businesses
• 28,000 employees
• Businesses presence:
o Cisco, IBM, Intel, Microsoft
Fig 3: Cities with a higher share of college educated workers have
created more jobs. (Source: Citi-GPS “Technology at Work 2.0)
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