Special session C: The economic geography of innovation - data and methodological challenges

There is increasing evidence about the spatial distribution of innovative activities, which tend to be highly clustered in large and densely populated urban areas to benefit from agglomeration economies. However, measuring the spatial distribution of innovative activities could be challenging, as current statistics are often based on specific types of innovation indicators, which could only partially represent the real extent of innovation activities.
This special session at ESCoE's 2024 Conference on Economic Measurement considered new and alternative data and methods to analyse the spatial distribution of innovative activities. We will discuss the following topics with experts from the ONS and other Government departments: the spatial distribution of innovative activities; novel methods to measure agglomeration, innovation and knowledge spillovers; the identification of regional technological specialisation; the role of public policies for regional innovation; and new and alternative data and methods to measure R&D and innovation.
Chair: Enrico Vanino, ONS and University of Sheffield
(1) “Transforming the R&D statistics in the UK”, Laura Haddock and Beck Keane, ONS.
(2) "Understanding the organisations that receive UKRI funding and their collaborators", Tyler Rickard, DSIT.
(3) “Identifying R&D Business Clusters in the UK”, Jon Cooper, DSIT.
(4) “Uncovering Hidden Innovators using big data to develop comprehensive measures of firm innovation and regional tech specialisation”, Enrico Vanino, ONS and University of Sheffield.
(5) Discussion and Q&As
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