Making Geographical Clusters more successful: Complexity-based policies

In recent years there is increasing evidence of the adaptive failure of geographic clusters (GCs) ranging across the US, UK, and other parts of Europe. To explain success and failure in GCs, complexity science is used. It holds that successful GC evolution happens only if they behave as effective complex adaptive systems (CASs). A review of complexity science is offered and suggests seven essential properties of CASs, four from the European and American Schools, and three drawn from the Econophysics School. Furthermore, we suggest that when GCs lose one or more CAS properties they tend to fail. Finally, we suggest policy guidelines, aimed at fostering the GC success. They are based on the seven properties of CASs and are addressed to guarantee that GCs keep all these properties.