Innovation and the Growth of Cities
Zoltan J. Acs
Edward Elgar Publishing
‘Zoltan Acs has produced one of the major works of the past decade or two that helps to explain why cities grow. A central premise and one supported by empirical analysis throughout the book is that entrepreneurship is an important local activity that translates raw knowledge (that by the way is shown to be highly local) into ideas and start-ups that grow and underpin and sustain metropolitan growth. This is a must read for all students and scholars of urban and national economic growth and related policies.’     <P>- Roger R. Stough, George Mason University     <P>‘Innovation is the driving force of the dynamics of regions and cities. Innovation however, is not an autonomous miracle, but is emerging out of knowledge creation and adoption. Thus, knowledge production is at the heart of economic progress. Zoltan Acs offers in this book a brilliant overview and convincing empirical evidence on the fascinating relationship between successful entrepreneurship and knowledge-intensive areas. His ideas form a unique blend of elements from the new economic geography, the new growth theory and the new innovation economics theory and provide a thorough analysis of the changing economic landscape in the US.’    <P>- Peter Nijkamp, Free University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands    <P>‘Acs’s book demonstrates the link between entrepreneurship, geographic proximity and economic growth. It identifies the missing links from a wide range of viewpoints and with a modern empirical flavor. It shows that a proper environment is needed for the idea to start a firm and to contribute to the economic development of this environment. Acs provides vital reading for academics and policymakers aiming to understand the role of spillovers and clusters when explaining the growth of cities. He captures the essence of the economic dynamics of cities in the modern economy.’    <P>- Roy Thurik, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands    <P>This new and original book by Zoltan Acs explores the relationship between industrial innovation and economic growth at the regional level and reaches conclusions as to why some regions grow and others decline. While the analysis draws on industrial organization, labor economics, regional science, geography and entrepreneurship, the book focuses on innovation and the growth of cities by the use of endogenous growth theory.    <P>The author argues that industrial innovation is the driving force behind long run regional growth, and explores the issues of how technology and entrepreneurship can foster and promote growth at the regional level.    <P>With its multidisciplinary approach, Innovation and the Growth of Cities will be warmly welcomed by academics and researchers alike in the areas of innovation and science, regional science and geography, entrepreneurship and evolutionary economics.