Bernard Pecqueur

The territorial economy: a general approach in order to understand and deal with globalization

Today many contributions are dedicated to the role of industrial districts, clusters and other such networks in local economic development, or to local innovation dynamics (innovative milieus, technopoles, regional innovation systems, learning regions and so on). In our opinion, the crucial question at present no longer consists of providing new notions and concepts. We believe that it is time to develop a more ambitious, theoryoriented research programme that aims to take space and time in socioeconomic theory fully into account. The objective of this chapter is to give a first account of what we believe to be the upcoming issues and theoretical questions in research about territorial economic dynamics. Indeed, a better understanding of the territorial economy is central to greater understanding of the roles that networks play in local economic development processes.

Territorial Resources and Sustainability: Analyzing Development in a “Post-Fordist” Scenario

In response to the challenges imposed by the effects of economic and cultural homogenization and deterritorialization brought on by Fordist rules of economic growth, territorial development strategies cannot be separated from the quest for sustainability - in particular that of the so-called “territorial resources”. But sustainable development is usually seen as a global response to global issues, whereas territorial development usually takes place at an infra-regional scale, mobilizing local actors concerned by local issues. Our purpose then is to show that it is the confrontation of two systems of reasoning which enables the issues of a “post-Fordist model” to be apprehended. In this sense, we examine what could be termed a flexible and adaptable model of “sustainable territorial development”, whose roots are anchored in the tradition of “eco-development” research.