Research contribution to the community development

Abstract

Today all countries are adopting development strategies based on the knowledge economy. Cities become promoters of innovations by offering an innovative ecosystem following the connections that arise between all actors, thus adopting the concept of Smart City. This article argues the importance of the research component generated by universities and research institutes for the community development. The cluster approach is an effective tool to take into account the interests of the scientific and educational environment and the business community needs, creating conditions for knowledge and innovations transfer into the real economy. Particular attention was paid to the role of government policies to stimulate clusters development and to stimulate the participation of science component within partnerships of universities and research centers with business sector.

Keywords

• economic development
• innovation economy
• innovative cluster
• innovation ecosystem
• knowledge transfer
• smart city