In the last few years research on regional development has increased dramatically. Real-world concerns have - to a certain extent - driven this scientific concern of interest. The field has been given a big boost in particular by the process of European integration and the attempt to understand how this deeper integration will work at the regional level. This volume makes a modest attempt to reconsider the issue of regional development mainly from an European perspective and in the light of the transition of society towards a knowledge-driven economy. It originated from the Thirteenth European Advanced Studies Institute in Regional Science, held in Istanbul, July 2-8, 2000. In producing the book, as friends and colleagues, we have benefited from the possibility of exchange of ideas and experience. We have also received useful assistance from the referees who have offered observations and advice in their written reports. The soundness of their comments has contributed immensely to the quality of the volume. We should, in addition, like to acknowledge the timely manner in which contributing authors have responded to our requests, and their willingness to follow the stringent editorial guidelines.

1 Regional Development Reconsidered: A Prologue.- A: Innovation Systems, Learning Regions and Human Resources.- 2 A Systemic Approach to Innovation.- 3 Regional Industrial Policy and the New Economy.- 4 Human Resources and Regional Development.- B: Competitiveness and Cooperation.- 5 The Role of Public Institutions in Regional Competition.- 6 Regional Cooperation of the Baltic States: Implications for Membership in the European Union.- C: Mobility in Transport Systems in Europe.- 7 The Role of Infrastructure for Expansion and Integration.- 8 Restructuring of Transportation Networks.- 9 Socio-economic Dynamics and Spatial Mobility: A Scenario Application to Environmental Strategies in Transport.- D: Regional Development and Policy Issues.- 10 Some Effects of Regional Differentiation on Integration in the European Community.- 11 An Institutional and Cultural Perspective on Romanian Regional Development Policy.- List of Figures.- List of Tables.- Author Index.- List of Contributors.