Bridging Borders and Constructing Spaces:The Triple Helix Discourse in the Öresund Region

Abstract: In light of the current process of regional integration prospering in the European Union, the Öresund region has become a dynamic geographical entity that in the most recent decades has experienced substantial increased growth in terms of economy, innovation, social activity and culture. Thus, the interest of this study lies in investigating a perspective of this integration process, namely the development of the Triple Helix Model (THM) within the Öresund region. Along with emerging regional actors and organisational mechanisms, the THM has gained wind and become a frequently applied concept in regional discourse. As such, based on social constructivism as an ontological claim, a discourse analysis was conducted in relation to leading regional actors, such as the Öresund Committee, the Øresund University and the Øresund Science Region. Accordingly, the aim is to trace how and possibly why an alteration in discursive practices has constructed the Öresund region as a political space. The examination shows that the THM had indeed had been adopted and it had constructed a type of political space within the Öresund. The new type of political space in Öresund entailed a crystallisation of strategies, new organisational schemes and discursive practices that includes new actors in contest for political gains.