Innovation policy and corporate responsibility in the periphery Ívar Jónsson Kristbjörg Jónasdóttir

Main purpose of the project: To observe the actual and potential role of corporate responsibility in the socio-economic development in the northern periphery It will concentrate on the role of mutuals in the financial sector as well as cooperatives in manufacturing and services concerning long term investment, social responsibility in the communities, levels of profitability and social as well as business investment in the communities. The focus will also be on corporate responsibility in the private sector concerning these matters. Finally, the role of corporate responsibility will be observed in relation to corporations’ active participation in the development of regional innovation systems in the northern periphery.

Corporate respnsibility requires that corporations minimise their negative environmental impacts and act in conformity with societal expectations.such as by implementing policies against social discrimination, unfair treatment of suppliers and sub-contractors and policies for communitity development as well as support to sporting, cultural and health/welfare activities and philantropic intermediaries Regional innovation system refers to collaboration between corpoarations, research institutes and the public sector that aims at introducing new ways of delivering and producing goods and services

The project will concentrate on a comparative study of mutuals and cooperatives in selected regions in the northern periphery The focus will be on mutuals and cooperatives in the financial, service, creative and manufacturing sectors It will highlight what measures they take in terms of investing in their communities and their regional innovation systems In particular the project will focus on the role mutuals and cooperatives play in the formation and reproduction of social capital The mutuals-cooperative sector will be compared to the private for-profit sector in terms of the extent of the scale oand scope of corporate responsibility and community commitment Comparison between different regions in different countires will generate the potential of inter-community-learning and development of new business strategies that will improve conditions for local innovation

The project requires inter-disciplinary approaches that emphasize socio-economics perspectives It requires as well collaboration with and between stakeholders in the corporate, public and research sectors It mirrors EU’s increasing emphasis on studies of the role of the non-profit sector in terms of social cohesion and job-creation