2 opportunities within the OPENLOC project

Published the 2nd of December 2008

The government of the Autonomous Province of Trento, with the initiative called “Grandi Progetti di Ricerca” (Major Research Proposal), has finances the project “OPENLOC – Public policies and local development: innovation policy and its effects on locally embedded global dynamics”. The project full encompasses the priorities individuated within the Development Plan of the Autonomous Province of Trento for the period 2003-2008.
OPENLOC started with 1st October 2008 and the end of the activities is planned for September 2011; lead partner is the University of Trento – Faculty of Economics – Department of Economics with Prof. Giovanni Pegoretti. The other partners are Natural Museum of Trento, University of Bologna – Departments of Economics and Manchester Institute of Innovation Research of the Manchester Business School, University of Manchester (UK). Sub-partners, involved in the activities, are the OECD (Paris – Trento) and University of Freiburg - Institute of Sociology (Germany).
The project is articulated in 5 work-packages:

  1. Configuration, functioning and performance of local networks in global context: the importance of knowledge networks
  2. Global dynamics and local implications: interpretative models and policy scenarios
  3. Innovation ecologies of local systems: policy and governance implications
  4. Social and environmental capital: the possible contribution to local development in a global context
  5. International Doctoral program in “Local Development and Global Dynamics” (connected with “School on Local Development” of University of Trento

The application at local level of the main tasks of the project is carried out within the WP4. The activities, realised by Foundation Edmund Mach, University of Trento and Natural Museum of Trento, have the main aim to explore the role of fixed resources, as natural and social capital, in order to determine the competitiveness of local systems. Both the capitals, implicitly, could play a role of threats or opportunity. The relevance to investigate the magnitude of these capitals is to draw initiatives in order to foster, at local level,  the process of innovation and sustainable development.
Economic evaluation of ecosystems goods and services represents a frontier in research. In the spite of the main aim of the project, it is very relevant to understand and quantify the fluxes of value and knowledge related to a particular ecosystem function. These fluxes can represent a valid tools for implementing policies of local development in rural and mountain communities.
The project OPENLOC has some connections with other research initiatives of the Foundation Edmund Mach, in particular those inherent land use and climate change. This represent an opportunity to develop further analysis and evaluations regarding the dynamics of social-ecological systems of Trentino. In this spite, the evidences, and consequently impacts, of climate change, that occur globally, should represent an important effect for the local socio-economic framework.

The opportunities are the following:

  1. Research fellow in social, anthropological or economic sciences for research activities about the role of Social Capital in the processes supporting the local development, within a frame of global changes (Cod. 028_CEA_ECO) - open until 7th January 2009;
  2. Research fellow in social, anthropological or economic sciences for research activities about the role of Natural Capital in the processes supporting the local development, within a frame of global changes (Cod. 029_CEA_SOC) - open until 7th January 2009.