In spite of the increasing interest at a practical level on the policies that various European countries have set off to support and develop theirs industrial clusters, the scarce knowledge about it constitutes a paradox itself,  specially from a comparative point of view.

Which are the public action needs that firms within European clusters have in view of the changing trends in the manufacturing sector? How (and to what extent) are private and public actors reorganizing and reconceptualizing their actions for and towards industrial clusters? What type of interactions among public and private actors are emerging in light of the fast changes in markets and political action frameworks (in particular, the EU enlargement and the economic globalization processes)? How is the clusters’ governance articulated in European countries? And, what lessons can be obtained from all these dynamics? This communication presents the results of a study carried out in 6 European countries on these issues, and synthesizes the most important messages from a recent book on the topic written by Susana Borrás and Dimitrios Tsagdis.

About Susana Borrás

Susana Borrás (40) is a political scientist, who obtained her university degree in 1991 at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain; and her Ph.D. in 1996 at the European University Institute, in Florence, Italy. Her research as political scientist has concentrated on two main areas:

The governance of science and innovation, with special focus on the design and rationales of innovation policy, the theories and governance patterns of innovation systems, and the legitimacy and democratic aspects of the governance of innovation, at the EU, national and regional levels.

EU governance, with special focus on the new modes of governance (new policy instruments), in particular the Open Method of Coordination, the governance and politics of the Lisbon strategy, the role of the Commission, and the patterns of coordination and network governance in the EU.

She is European editor of the journal “Science and Public Policy”. And she is currently president of the association European Policy for Intellectual Property (EPIP) and president of the Danish Society for European Studies (DSE). She has been expert advisor to the European Commission, European Parliament, European Patent Office, and Unesco.