Conceptual Model of Smart Region

Abstract

Political, technological, institutional and other reforms of the last decade encouraged communities of cities, regions and states to search for new ways to enhance their competitive advantage in the global marketplace. One of the most popular responses to the fast-changing conditions is their effort to become “smart”. Smartness, a feature characterizing, first of all, an individual, nowadays is widely attributed to almost all phenomena of life. Smart regions are considered as one of the essential preconditions for the success of the EU Cohesion policy and development strategies of many EU member states, regions or cities. However, discussions about the content of the “smart region” concept, and, in particular, its qualitative characteristics, still receive very little attention of scholars and practitioners. This paper presents the results of the theoretical research that defines the “smart region” concept in the social sciences context. The authors of the research highlight the main elements of the “smart region” concept as well as its qualitative characteristics. A theoretical model of a smart region is proposed.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ppaa.13.3.8305