MIL OSI Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –
The Russian Science Foundation has summed up the results of a competition for group research led by young scientists. Grant support was received by a project led by Timofey Rakov from Visual History Labs. The study is devoted to scientific and technological clusters in the late Soviet and post-Soviet periods using the example of Zelenograd, Troitsk, Dolgoprudny and Peterhof. The project is designed for three years with a budget of 6 million for each year of grant implementation.
The aim of the project is to study scientific and technological clusters in the suburbs of Moscow and St. Petersburg in the period from 1960 to 2010. The scientists will pay special attention to four specific cases: Zelenograd, Dolgoprudny, Troitsk and the campus of St. Petersburg State University in Peterhof. The structure of the scientific and technological cluster includes various organizations, such as universities, research institutes, design bureaus, enterprises and local authorities. All of them are connected by economic relations, social ties, organizational contacts, etc.
“The geography of the project is built taking into account the specifics of the research field of various scientific spaces in the USSR. As a rule, researchers study either science cities and nuclear cities (Obninsk, Dubna, Ozersk), or Siberian academic towns,” said Timofey Rakov, a research fellow at the Laboratory of Visual History. “The objects we selected differ significantly from academic towns and science cities in their trajectory. Troitsk, for example, was initially called an academic town, and then received the status of a full-fledged city, which did not happen with any of the Siberian academic towns. Dolgoprudny and Peterhof are examples of an educational, rather than scientific cluster, where the key role is played by universities rather than scientific institutes, as in science cities. Zelenograd is also an interesting space. It was originally conceived as a satellite city of Moscow, but at the same time it was focused on science and education. Thus, each of the spaces we have chosen differs from those already studied and has its own characteristics, which, in our opinion, can best be described through the clustering framework.”
The term “clustering” is borrowed from economics, based on the approaches of American economist Michael Porter. According to his theory, the process of cluster formation is a sign of a developed and complex economy. The project considers the selected objects in the long term – from the design stage to the current state. This approach will determine what makes clusters successful, how they are affected by the proximity of capitals and according to what scenarios they develop.
“Relying on Michael Porter’s approach is a certain challenge for us. He writes about market economies, while in the Soviet Union it was planned. Moreover, Porter believed that one of the reasons for the failure of clusters was the participation of the state in their creation,” says Timofey Rakov. “At the same time, the Soviet state was often the only actor in the formation of clusters. We hope for a broad discussion with interested colleagues about the very idea of clustering, its application to a planned economy and a post-socialist market economy. In addition, we take a long chronological period, which will allow us to look at the formation of clusters in dynamics. Thanks to this, the results of the study can be useful to those responsible for the management and development of the cases we have selected.”
Over the course of the year, the researchers will interview former and current cluster employees and study their ego-documents. They will also analyze archival and library materials covering the history and modern times of Dolgoprudny, Zelenograd, Peterhof, and Troitsk. Historians, anthropologists, sociologists, and economists from Moscow universities — MVSES, RANEPA, and MIPT — as well as from the European University in St. Petersburg, will join the project.
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Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
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