VALETEC Park (Brazil): an innovative Science Park enhancing a traditional industrial cluster to leap forward in the knowledge-based economy

The Sinos Valley region, in Brazil, has been one of the most comprehensive and competitive shoemaker cluster in the world. This industry, however, is being eroded by the competition from emerging economies as part of Globalization.One of the responses to this challenge is the VALETEC Park. Initially conceived as a traditional campus-like science park, bound to a 36 hectares tract, VALETEC Park has been transformed into a science park disseminated throughout the region in the form of segments adjacent to the clusters of the innovation assets, which are scattered across the territory.In this process, the park became one of the leading driving vectors of the Sinos Valley Project for the Future, a farsighted and innovative regional development program.\nThe paper presents an analysis of the evolution of VALETEC Park and suggestions regarding science parks in regions where industry is being stifled by the competition within the Global Economy.