In a globalizing, knowledge-based economy, innovation and creative capacity lead to economic prosperity. Starting in 2006, the Innovation Systems Research Network began a six year-long study on how city-regions in Canada were surviving and thriving in a globalized world. That study resulted in the “Innovation, Creativity, and Governance in Canadian City-Regions” series, which examines the impact of innovation, talent, and institutions on sixteen city-regions across Canada. This volume explores how the social dynamics that influence innovation and knowledge flows in Canadian city-regions contribute to transformation and long-term growth.

With case studies examining cities of all sizes, from Toronto to Moncton, Innovating in Urban Economies analyzes the impact of size, location, and the regional economy on innovation and knowledge in Canada’s cities.

David A. Wolfe, PhD, ABPP, is a psychologist specializing in issues affecting children and youth — including prevention of bullying.

After completing his PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of South Florida in 1980, David Wolfe pursued an academic career in Canada focusing on child abuse and domestic violence. He holds the inaugural RBC Chair in Children’s Mental Health at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and heads the CAMH Centre for Prevention Science in London, Ontario. He is also Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology at the University of Toronto. Since 2007 he has served as Editor-in-Chief of Child Abuse & Neglect: The International Journal.

David has received the Donald O. Hebb Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology as a Science from the Canadian Psychological Association, and the Blanche L. Ittleson Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Delivery of Childrens Services and the Promotion of Childrens Mental Health from the American Orthopsychiatric Association. His books include Adolescent Risk Behaviors: Why teens experiment and strategies to keep them safe (with P. Jaffe & C. Crooks; Yale University Press, 2006); Child abuse: Implications for child development and psychopathology, 2nd Edition (Sage, 1999); and Abnormal Child Psychology, 4th edition (with E. Mash; Wadsworth, 2009).

His interests in violence prevention have culminated into a comprehensive school-based initiative for reducing adolescent violence and related risk behaviors, known as the Fourth R. The Fourth R is currently used in over 800 high schools throughout Canada. It was recently identified as a top evidence-based program for school-based violence prevention by the New Jersey-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, where it is being implemented in several US sites as part of their national violence-prevention initiative.

David A. Wolfe's profile page

‘The volume’s empirical richness alone makes it worth recommending and the book will prove a valuable resource for those looking to study, understand, and theorize the future of innovation and resiliency in urbanized knowledge economies.’

Urban Studies vol 52: August 2015

‘David Wolfe delivers a masterful collection of essays that investigate various components of urban innovation and economics… This volume could very well offer findings to aid academics and policy makers to better understand economic structures and outcomes.’

Journal of Urban Affairs vol 39:02:2017

‘Innovating is a great group of case studies written by some great Canadian experts. Anyone interested in innovation should keep it handy.’

Science and Public Policy November 2015