LOCAL ENTERPRISES IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY: ISSUES OF GOVERNANCE AND UPGRADING; ED. BY HUBERT SCHMITZ

This book opens a fresh chapter in the debate on local enterprise clusters and their strategies for upgrading in the global economy. The authors employ a novel conceptual framework in their research on industrial clusters in Europe, Latin America and Asia and provide new perspectives and insights for researchers and policymakers alike. The debate on local upgrading capacity is torn between two lines of thinking: those who believe that local relationships between enterprises and institutions are key to upgrading, and those who argue that the spaces for upgrading are defined by the sourcing strategies of global buyers. From this debate a number of important questions arise: how feasible is it to develop local upgrading strategies? Can local policy networks make a difference, or do global forces undermine them? Do global quality and labor standards marginalize developing country producers or do they help them to upgrade? To answer these questions, the book brings together theoretical and empirical research on local and regional clusters, global value chains and global standards, using case studies from developed and developing countries. The authors provide a new understanding of how global and local governance interact, highlighting power and inequality in global chains but also identifying scope for local action. By showing how and why insertion in global value chains can accelerate or inhibit local upgrading, this book represents a significant contribution to the academic and political debate on globalization. It will be essential reading for all students, academics and researchers interested in global political economy, global and local governance structures, economic geography and innovation studies. This book opens a fresh chapter in the debate on local enterprise clusters and their strategies for upgrading in the global economy. The authors employ a novel conceptual framework in their research on industrial clusters in Europe, Latin America and Asia and provide new perspectives and insights for researchers and policymakers alike.The debate on local upgrading capacity is torn between two lines of thinking: those who believe that local relationships between enterprises and institutions are key to upgrading, and those who argue that the spaces for upgrading are defined by the sourcing strategies of global buyers. From this debate a number of important questions arise: how feasible is it to develop local upgrading strategies? Can local policy networks make a difference, or do global forces undermine them? Do global quality and labour standards marginalise developing country producers or do they help them to upgrade? To answer these questions, the book brings together theoretical and empirical research on local and regional clusters, global value chains and global standards, using case studies from developed and developing countries. The authors provide a new understanding of how global and local governance interact, highlighting power and inequality in global chains but also identifying scope for local action.By showing how and why insertion in global value chains can accelerate or inhibit local upgrading, this book represents a significant contribution to the academic and political debate on globalization. It will be essential reading for all students, academics and researchers interested in global political economy, global and local governance structures, economic geography and innovation studies. Preliminaries......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 List of figures......Page 8 List of tables......Page 9 List of contributors......Page 11 Acknowledgements......Page 13 1 Globalized localities: introduction......Page 14 2 Regions in the ‘world economic triangle’......Page 33 3 Making sense of global standards......Page 66 4 Governance in global value chains......Page 108 5 The underground revolution in the Sinos Valley......Page 123 6 How globalization affects Italian industrial districts......Page 153 7 Upgrading in the tile industry of Italy, Spain and Brazil......Page 187 8 Local upgrading strategies in response to global challenges......Page 213 9 Clustering and upgrading in global value chains......Page 246 10 Global quality standards and technological upgrading in the Brazilian auto-Components industry......Page 278 11 The effect of global standards on local producers......Page 310 12 Paradoxes and ironies of locational policy in the new global economy......Page 339 13 Chain governance and upgrading......Page 362 Index......Page 396

bringing Together Theoretical And Empirical Research On Local And Regional Clusters, Global Value Chains, And Global Standards, Schmitz (development Studies, University Of Sussex, Uk) Presents Perspectives On The Debate On Local Enterprise Clusters And Their Strategies For Upgrading In The Global Economy. The Book Provides A New Understanding Of How Global And Local Governance Interact, Highlighting Power And Inequality In Global Chains But Also Identifying Scope For Local Action. Contributors Employ A Novel Conceptual Framework In Their Research On Industrial Clusters In Europe, Latin America, And Asia, Using Case Studies From Developing And Developed Countries. Readership For The Book Includes Students And Researchers In Global Political Economy And Governance Structures. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, Or

Local Enterprises in the Global Economy is an important contribution to a debate that is currently gathering momentum throughout the social sciences. At the core of this debate is the role of regions in economic development processes, not only in the more economically advanced countries of the world, but also - and more urgently - in low and middle-income countries. With its emphasis on the need for local economic development strategies to deal with intensifying global opportunities and threats, this book pushes the debate forward into hitherto largely uncharted territory. (A cura dell'editore) "By showing how and why insertion in global value chains can accelerate or inhibit local upgrading, this book represents a significant contribution to the academic and political debate on globalization. It will be essential reading for all students, academics and researchers interested in global political economy, global and local governance structures, economic geography and innovation studies."--Jacket