Developing a Knowledge Infrastructure to Foster Regional Innovation in the Periphery: A Study from Quebec's Coastal Region in Canada

Melançon Y. and Doloreux D. Developing a knowledge infrastructure to foster regional innovation in the periphery: a study from Quebec's coastal region in Canada, Regional Studies. Building on the case study of Quebec's coastal region maritime industry, the relevance of the regional innovation system framework to analyse and plan innovation development in the periphery is discussed. The analysis indicates that in Quebec's coastal region, while public policies using the regional innovation system framework have contributed to create a relatively well-developed knowledge infrastructure in the maritime industry, they have not yet succeeded in achieving the main goal of fostering a 'competitive regional production system'. This case suggests that a 'thickening' of the knowledge infrastructure does not automatically lead to significant development in the productive system in peripheral regions.