Biography
Luca is Professor of Urban Innovation at the Business School of Edinburgh Napier University, in which he is leading the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Subject Group. Luca is also Professor of Urban Innovation at Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech), where he is collaborating in delivering the €32 million Horizon 2020 smart city project FinEst Twins and the €1.3 million smart city pilot project GreenTwins.
Over the course of his professional career, Luca has committed himself to improving our understanding of urban and regional innovation management in the digital era. His research is multi-disciplinary and connects urban studies and computer science with science, technology and innovation studies. His main research interests include: technology-related urban and regional innovation; sustainable smart urbanism; smart city development projects and strategies; Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3); and strategic planning for smart city transitions and RIS3.
Luca has a sustained track-record of producing high-quality publication outputs and has contributed to generate an overall University income of approximately £16 million through research and consultancy activities, mainly supported by EU funding schemes (EAFRD, 7FP, Horizon 2020).