This new project, entitled Exploring the Link between Publicly Funded R&D Collaborations and Regional Technological Development, aims to provide novel evidence on the role played by public Research and Development (R&D) grants in supporting regional technological development, reflecting the diffusion of knowledge and the branching into new technological specialisations across regions.
The project will match data on UKRI funded collaborative R&D and innovation projects with measures of technological innovation output, proxied by patent data, using machine learning techniques. First, we will estimate the direct effects of public R&D funding in supporting regional technological development. Secondly, we will identify indirect effects generated by collaborative networks, which are stimulated by exchange of knowledge between a wider set of partners, including private businesses and public research institutions located in different regions of the UK. Findings from the study will provide important insights for innovation policies to support a more equal diffusion of innovation and spur long-term development across regions.
Exploring the Link between Publicly Funded R&D Collaborations and Regional Technological Development is funded by the Innovation Research Caucus, for which Enrico is a member of the Council of Experts.
The project will run from January to December 2025 and is in collaboration with Professor Carlo Corradini from Henley Business School.
