Willem van Winden

Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences/Centre for Applied Research on Education · Centre for Applied Research on Economics and Management

In this publication, we search for answers and insights to a key question: how can cities foster economic development and develop ‘new urban economies’. And, importantly, how can they do that in concertation with different urban stakeholders, responding adequately to key challenges and developments beyond their control, building on the cities’ own...

The shift towards a knowledge-based economy seems to favour some well-endowed urban areas. However, not all cities benefit equally. This paper discusses the shift towards a knowledge-based economy in different types of European city, and derives policy conclusions for local and national governments. An integrative frame of analysis is developed and...

This paper analyses and compares the dynamics of clusters in nine urban regions in Europe. The cluster perspective in the studying of growth processes in cities has added value because, increasingly, economic activities cross the boundaries of traditional economic sectors, as networks are becoming the leading organisational principle. The integral...

In the face of increasing globalisation, with the biggest cities reaping the greatest rewards, knowledge economy specialist Willem van Winden examines the future for smaller university cities.

Through the Dublinked initiative, the city of Dublin opens up data about public provisions,promoting data-driven innovation and encourages new collaborations (between city departments, IT companies, research institutes). The aim is to design better services, solve different sorts of urban challenges, and, importantly, create new businesses along th...

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to many firms reassessing how to deal with their communities. In this study, we focus on a coworking space and examine how the management staff and its coworking community reacted to the pandemic. The uniqueness of coworking spaces is that the community is both the paying customer and it is an integral part of the cowo...

Entrepreneurship collectives can be a great asset to a neighborhood. As a collective, it is easier to make your streets safer, cleaner and greener. But streets are public spaces, so cooperation with municipalities and other public institutions is necessary. Interested to read how this cooperation can take form and what it takes to make it work, tak...

The potential of technological innovation to address urban sustainability has been widely acknowledged over the last decade. Across cities globally, local governments have engaged in partnership arrangements with the private sector to initiate pilot projects for urban innovation, typically co-funded by innovation subsidies. A recurring challenge ho...

There are good reasons to study urban innovation from a systemic perspective. A key finding in innovation research is that organizations rarely innovate in isolation, but in interaction with clients, competitors, suppliers, and other organizations. A system perspective is useful in understanding and analyzing these interactions. Cities and urban re...

Universities have become more engaged or entrepreneurial, forging deeper relations with society beyond the economic sphere. To foster, structure, and institutionalize a broader spectrum of engagement, new types of intermediary organizations are created, going beyond the “standard” technology transfer offices, incubators, and science parks. This pap...

This paper analyses Amsterdam's Startup-in-Residence (SiR) programme as new type of policy to engage startups in the development of urban innovation through a challenge-based public procurement of innovation (PPI) process. The programme is being mimicked by other cities and government agencies, but so far there has not been a rigorous, theoreticall...

Launching smart city activities and projects requires political support. For sustainable approaches, a concrete strategy, and leadership endorsement from the municipal government is crucial. In accordance with the most prevalent definitions of a smart city, postulating that a city must enhance quality of life and provide benefits to the people livi...

Universitäten sind Magneten für Studenten, Doktoranden, Professoren – und große Unternehmen. Während einige Städte dadurch einen Wachstumsschub erleben, versuchen andere durch eine Hochschulneugründung nicht den Anschluss zu verlieren. Eins haben jedoch alle Wissensstädte gemeinsam: Die Gefahr, in eine Parallel­gesellschaft aus Wissenselite und übr...

For policies in the jobs and skills field, industry clustering matters. A key challenge for jobs and skills agendas on any policy level is to find a good balance between generic and more sector-specific, specialist skills. On the one hand, in a fast changing economy, generic and “meta” skills are gaining importance, such as communication skills, te...

This paper describes how AS-FABRIK maps the competences of players in the Industry 4.0 sector through a process of tracking, tracing and matching. It shows the ins and out of partnership brokering: bringing new collaborators together, making optimum use of existing collaborative organisations (such as cluster organisations or industry associations)...

This paper explores knowledge-based urban development related to higher education and campuses. The increasing local engagement and the political appreciation and economisation of HEIs can be found in the discourses of civic university and HEIs as entrepreneurial actors. This article also provides an introduction to design thinking, which has been...

This article shows how Bilbao's innovative AS-FABRIK project helps local industrial firms to make the transition towards a future-proof and digitally empowered industry. They take a collaborative approach, seeking to connect existing competences in the region, and develop new ones where needed. To better understand how it works, I conducted an inte...

The emergence of collaborative workspaces is a remarkable feature of contemporary cities. These spaces have appeared rapidly, catering for the locational needs of self-employed workers, start-ups, and small-size companies. The objective of this paper is to provide an analysis of four categories of collaborative workspaces (Accelerators, Incubators,...

Deze gids bevat een praktisch stappenplan om op basis van beschikbare reststoffen één of meerdere levensvatbare business modellen te ontwikkelen. Het doel hiervan is het omzetten van restmaterialen, afval, ongebruikte goederen of andere reststoffen in waardevolle producten of diensten op zo’n manier dat dit voor een ondernemer interessant is en een...

Can city administrations benefit from the entrepreneurial spirit of startups, and create better urban solutions with their help? In this paper, we critically assess the interplay between startups and city administrations for city-driven innovative public procurement or “challenge-based procurement” policy, taking Amsterdam’s Startup in Residence (S...

This article describes the AS-FABRIK project, a new innovative policy initiative of Bilbao (Basque Country, Spain) to promote its knowledge economy. The AS-FABRIK project is a coin with two sides: first, it promotes “smart specialisation”, aiming to make manufacturing –a traditionally strong sector in the city- and related knowledge intensive busin...

In many cities, pilot projects are set up to test new technologies that help to address urban sustainability issues, improve the effectiveness of urban services, and enhance the quality of life of citizens. These projects, often labelled as “smart city” projects, are typically supported by municipalities, funded by subsidies, and run in partnership...

This study takes a valuation perspective to study how and where products and innovations are gaining ‘economic significance’ in the contemporary economy. Building on a recent research stream in economic geography and urban and regional studies, it highlights that the economic value of many products is not formed within production systems alone, but...

This paper puts forward a conceptual framework to analyse emergence and the development of planned knowledge locations in cities (science and technology parks, creative factories, knowledge hubs, etc.). It argues that the study and the practice of developing these precincts can benefit from explicitly considering the broader territorial context, th...

This paper puts forward a conceptual framework to analyse emergence and the development of planned knowledge locations in cities (science and technology parks, creative factories, knowledge hubs, etc.). It argues that the study and the practice of developing these precincts can benefit from explicitly considering the broader territorial context, th...

Getting smart city solutions off the ground is not just about developing and applying technology: it demands new networking and management competencies. Solutions are not developed and implemented by one single company, but take shape in networks, at the intersection of technologies and industries, and with the involvement of citizens/end users. Fo...

Op een zondag gaf onze afwasmachine een onheilspel-lend signaal: foutcode E25, pomp verstopt. Wat nu? De timing kon niet slechter: we zouden bezoek krijgen, en de vaat was nog smerig. En ik haat afwassen. De hoge nood bracht mij, gepromoveerd theoreticus met twee linker-handen, tot de volgende gedachte: zou ik die pomp mis-schien zelf kunnen repare...

This paper explores the drivers behind a recent “urban turn” of planned knowledge locations in Europe. While acknowledging a general tendency towards more urbanity, we argue that a dense and diverse urban environment is not equally relevant for all types of knowledge-based activities because of nuanced workers’ preferences and innovation modes. Bas...

This paper analyses how managed coworking spaces affect the innovation process of their members. Managed coworking spaces are working environments for independent professionals, with an active role of the manager of the space to foster collaboration and interaction. These locations emerged in the late 2000s and were designed to host people who ende...

This article explains the challenges and dilemmas of fast-growing medium sized university cities in Europe: Science brings economic growth but also: rising prices and paralel expat communities.

In many cities, pilot projects are set up to test or develop new technologies that improve sustainability, urban quality of life or urban services (often labelled as “smart city” projects). Typically, these projects are supported by the municipality, funded by subsidies, and run in partnerships. Many projects however die after the pilot stage, and...

This paper analyses how managed coworking spaces affect the innovation process of their members. Managed coworking spaces are working environments for independent professionals, with an active role of the manager of the space to foster collaboration and interaction. It is often taken for granted that coworking contributes to innovation, yet, it is...

This paper analyses how managed coworking spaces affect the innovation process of their members. Managed coworking spaces are working environments for independent professionals, with an active role of the manager of the space to foster collaboration and interaction. It is often taken for granted that coworking contributes to innovation, yet, it is...

In this presentation, I explain how innovation is being managed in Amsterdam. I depict the city as a project factory without central control. There is a lot of very innovative and successful projects (in fields like sustainability, mobility, circular economy etc.), but what lacks is coherence, vision, and cross-project learning.

This chapter described and analysed four contemporary management approaches to promote synergy at knowledge locations (science parks, campuses, knowledge quarters etc.): designing for interaction, managing the tenant mix, sharing facilities and promoting networks and communities. We explored and exemplified how the managers of six European knowledg...

San Sebastian’ s surf cluster is a city-driven, new-generation type of cluster policy that connects apparently unrelated activities around a common theme: surf. By choosing a theme rather than a specific sector, the cluster initiative refrains from ‘picking winners’ and opens new opportunities for economic diversification that make use of specific...

How can university and city administration co-create the city? Where do their interests meet and diverge, and what is needed to exploit synergies? This report explores the potential for co-creation in five domains: urban economic development, internationalisation, urban attractiveness & city branding, science & society, and student life. We provide...

The success of cities increasingly relies on its capacity to capitalize on its knowledge base, but also on its potential to anchor external knowledge and the strategies of knowledge-based firms. In this paper we analyze how a “born global” start-up firm is linked to different types of places, and how it explores and exploits different territorial i...

Why are some regions and cities so good at attracting talented people, creating high-level knowledge, and producing exciting new ideas and innovations? What are the ingredients of success? Can innovative cities be created and stimulated, or do they just flourish by mere chance? This book analyses the development and management of innovation systems...