The Role of Government in Advancing Innovation Districts

Innovation districts are hyper-local innovation geographies that leverage unique assets–their R&D strengths, quality place, and strong relationships and networks–to drive new levels of economic and innovative growth. On-the-ground practice demonstrates that government contributes to the success of fast-growing innovation districts by championing, convening, and catalyzing these districts. The most optimal set of conditions to advance a district is when a collective of local stakeholders conceive a vision that powerfully aligns with government ambitions through policy, regulatory tools, and government powers. Building off research led by Julie Wagner at the Brookings Institution, Julie and the team at The Global Institute have developed a series of videos to further elevate the important roles that government can play in this field.

Julie Wagner, president of The Global Institute, and David Brito, research associate, have interviewed four leaders from three different levels of government:

• Yuval Admon, Deputy Head of Israel’s National Economic Council
• Professor Caroline McMillen, Chief Scientist for South Australia
• Dr. Joan Clos, Former Mayor of the City of Barcelona
• Ruth Engels, Spatial Economic Advisor at the City of Amsterdam

Please click on this link to view curated segments from these interviews:
The Role of Government in Advancing Innovation Districts