White Spaces Innovation in Sweden

How a future cluster strategy can or should be formed is an issue under discussion in various cluster initiatives and regions. It is also being examined in Vinnova‟s VINNVÄXT programme and the cluster programme of the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth - Tillväxtverket.

One question focuses on the appearance of so-called innovation platforms as the next developmental phase, due to the way in which innovations increasingly appear at the interface between different clusters and innovative milieus.

Evaluations and monitoring of cluster programmes show that the partnership between various clusters should be an important ingredient of inventiveness and market innovation. Region Skåne, Vinnova‟s VINNVÄXT programme and the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth discussed the prospects for this during 2010 and decided to look into these issues in more depth (theoretically as well as empirically) in a joint learning project during 2011.

This report documents a multi-client research project to investigate the subject of Innovation Platforms as the next phase in the evolution of Regional Innovation Policy. Those development agencies with responsibilities for supporting and promoting innovation at the leading edge have begun to recognise a basic truth about contemporary business innovation. This is that fruitful innovation interactions increasingly occur at interfaces between diverse firms, sectors, and even clusters. This offers national and regional development agencies a new, catalytic role in stimulating regional innovation. This occurs through shaping innovation platforms that can enable cross-fertilisation between clusters and tackling complex social innovation challenges like climate change, ageing, and sustainable cities to name a few.

The study builds on earlier work on Platform Policy for Vinnova reported in "The Matrix – Post Cluster Innovation Policy and Regional Policy in Transition" (Vinnova Report VR 2010:10).