Universities and Regional Engagement

Tatiana Iakovleva is Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Business School, University of Stavanger, Norway.Elisa Thomas is Associate Professor at Nord University and Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Stavanger, Norway.Laila Nordstrand Berg is Associate Professor at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway.Rómulo Pinheiro is Professor of Public Policy and Administration at the University of Agder, Norway.Paul Benneworth was Professor of Innovation and Regional Development at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway.

"The growth and significance of universities and education more widely, has become ever more important in stimulating innovation and economic developments across nations and regions. This edited book provides a perspective into how higher education institutions and other agents operate by using a unique three tier macro, meso and micro lens to view such relationships and the interplay of universities and educational providers with their external environment. This book is both timely and rewarding to the reader in providing such a rich conceptual framework and it covers a wide and diverse set of case studies across the globe." — Jeremy Howells, Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Business and Law, University of Portsmouth"For too long, the academic and practitioner debate on the role of universities has focused on a narrow view of commercialisation and knowledge exchange, drawing from a limited number of ‘best practice’ cases. This edited book offers a necessary and timely counterview to this idealised picture. It focuses instead on the ‘mundaneness’ of universities’ regional engagement, unpacking their complex and context specific institutional arrangements, practices and interactions. It is a must-read for scholars and practitioners interested in understanding regional development, innovation and higher education in real places." — Elvira Uyarra Professor of Innovation Studies, University of Manchester"This is a very welcome book which expands the discussion of universities’ regional engagement both thematically and geographically by going beyond the well-known cases to explore the mundane, but important, regional engagement activities of a wide range of universities. Universities and their academics engage with regional actors in a myriad of ways, most of which go under the radar both in policy-making and in research. This book is a step towards redressing this imbalance." — Rune Dahl Fitjar, Pro-rector for Innovation and Society and Professor of Innovation Studies, University of Stavanger"This book is important because it conceptualizes and provides examples of the broad range of mundane activities that makes up the majority of linkages between a university and its region. These everyday engagements connecting universities with their region are often neglected, while the attention has been on extraordinary cases of highly innovative regions and the commercialization of research with high economic impact. The chapters in this book are of great value for understanding how typical universities can engage with their region in a profound way." — Einar Rasmussen, Professor of Technology Management, Nord University

• 1. Universities’ Mundaneness and Regional Engagement: Setting the Stage 2. Unpacking Mundaneness: A Novel Conceptual Framework for Universities and Regional Engagement 3. Changes and Continuities in the Development of Rural Teacher Education in the Fjords of Western Norway 4. University Dynamic Capabilities to Boost Innovation Ecosystems: The Case of a University Alliance in Brazil 5. Exploring the Role of the University in the Creation of Knowledge Networks in the Aso Valley, a Rural Area in Marche Region (Italy) 6. The Third Mission: Enhancing Academic Engagement with Industry 7. Student Entrepreneurship Programmes in Higher Education Institutions: Multi-scalar Embeddedness and Heterogeneous Regional Responses 8. Student Incubators in China: The Cases in Shanghai and Wuhan 9. Aligning University Roles and Strategic Orientations: When Local Mandates and Global Aspirations Meet 10. Emergent Strategies and Tensions Between Decoupled University Structures and Management Initiatives: A Case Study of a Strategy Process 11. Towards The Strategic Cooperation Of “Two Worlds”: University-Local Government Relationships in Warsaw 12. Keeping Talents in the Region?: Educational Internships and Their Impact on Regional Development 13. Activist Leadership in the Caribbean: The Case of the University of the West Indies 14. Universities and Regions: New Insights and Emerging Developments