Medium-size Cities and Innovation: A Systemic Approach

Abstract

Since the mid 1980’s, the role of cities as territorial bases of innovation and economic growth has been reassessed. Large and diversified cities are categorized as «nurseries of innovation». However, recent land-use and zoning strategies and the academic literature argue that medium-size cities also have the capacity to induce innovation and promote regional economic growth. This quality has special significance in developing countries. The paper identifies the factors that affect the innovative performance of medium-size cities. It reviews the theoretical and empirical literature on innovation in medium-sized cities and the contributions from the systemic perspective of innovation. It is argued that the approach of regional/local innovation systems is a useful framework for understanding the innovative performance of medium-size cities and provides a guide for future empirical studies.