The Research Unit
- Urban and Regional Innovation Research Unit
- Director: Prof. Dr Nicos Komninos
- Faculty of Engineering
- Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
The URBAN AND REGIONAL INNOVATION Research Unit (URENIO) is a university laboratory for the promotion of research and supply of scientific and technological services. URENIO is affiliated to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and Development in the Faculty of Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
URENIO’s research focuses on territories that base their development on R&D, technological innovation, technology-intensive companies, technology infrastructure, and knowledge and information networks. Central research theme is the cities and regions of innovation including knowledge clusters, technopoles and science parks; regional innovation systems and strategies; digital innovation spaces and intelligent cities. A principal feature of these innovative regions is their capacity to create environments which facilitate innovative behaviour by the organisations which are members of this milieu, turning knowledge into new products, disseminating information, building organisational learning, integrating skills, and in the end generating innovations.
An intense development of innovative territories, under diverse conditions, is occurring all over the world: in the US technology districts, from Silicon Valley to Florida high-tech corridor, and media valley in New York; in western Europe, from Uusimaa in Finland, Stockholm and Kista in Sweden, Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands, to Sophia-Antipolis and Rhone-Alpes in south France, Bayern and Baden-Wurttemberg in southern Germany; in the technopoles of Japan; in Asia, from Malaysia and Singapore to Bangalore in India. Such trajectories have rapidly gained ground, constituting the prevailing model of urban and regional development at the beginning of the 21st century, which more and more regions are trying to copy and implement.
URENIO’s research on the territories of technological innovation is both theoretical and applied. At the theoretical level we are working on models of innovative regions (technology districts, technopoles, RIS-regions), on models of innovation processes (spin-offs, producer-supplier relations, technology co-operation, new product development), and on digital spaces facilitating innovation practices and policies. In particular, we are working in "intelligent cities and regions", which illustrate the most recent developments in innovative environments integrating knowledge clusters, regional systems of innovation, and digital innovation spaces.
Applied research is about the creation of innovative environments in EU regions, through the design and implementation of technopoles, science parks, innovation centres and incubators, regional innovation strategies, and virtual innovation environments including regional intelligence applications, online innovation tools, e-communities, and digital cities.
URENIO is mainly involved in competitive projects from the European R&D framework programmes and the Innovative Actions of the European Regional Development Fund. Members and research associates of URENIO have participated in numerous projects funded by national and international research institutions and the European Commission. These projects deal with the role of innovation in regional development, the typology and evolution of innovation-led cities and regions, the design of regional innovation strategies, regional knowledge management, and the creation of physical, institutional and digital environments supporting technological innovation.
Research Collaboration
Universities & Research Institutes
Catholic University of Louvain, Democritus University, Foundation for Research and Technology, Panteion University, Research and Technology Institute of Maastricht, Technical University of Crete, Technical University of Milan, University of Montpellier, University of Social Sciences of Toulouse, University of Thessaly, University of Wales (Cardiff).
Technology Organisations
Andalusia Technology Park, Archimides (Estonia), Centro Svilupo (Aosta), Fundacion Labein Fundecyt (Extremadura), Josef Stefan Institute (Slovenia), Infyde (Bilbao), Institut Jules Destree (Wallonia), Kent Technology Transfer Centre, LEIA Technology Centre, Alava Pronovum (Hungary), Science and Technology Park (Crete), Steinbeis Foundation (Stuttgart), Tagus Technology Park, Talos (Cyprus), Tech Tirol (Lower Austria), Technology Park Oulu TEKES (Finland), Technology Park (Thessaloniki), Zenit (Mulheim).
Regional Authorities
Basque Country, Central Macedonia, Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Ionian Islands, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Lorraine, Mantova, Peloponnesus, Southern Aegean, SW Oltenia, Thessaly Wales, Western Macedonia.
URENIO co-ordinates the European innovation network VERITE. The acronym stands for Virtual Environment for Regional Innovation Technologies, and the activities of the network are supported by the 5th Framework Programme of the European Commission (DG Enterprise).
VERITE is a discussion and dissemination forum. It is organised along the concept of ’smart communities’, which are communities of people/organisations sharing common interests, while a virtual environment supports the community’s activities, facilitating communication and interaction among members. The network is composed of academic and technology organisations from 18 European regions; it is open to new members and looks forward to enlarge the participation to discussions and sharing of practices on innovation, knowledge-creating companies, innovative regions, and innovation management techniques and technologies.