«Globalization» is defined as a process that leads to increased integration across national boundaries. The articles in this anthology focus on how this process influences local and regional conditions in Norway. The process can be characterized by the term «glocalization», which suggests that globalization is a process that occurs in interaction between global and local processes. The contributions represent a broad professional diversity.

Norwegian regional colleges, at one time educational institutions only, are today required also to be research institutions. The question is then, how can small institutions in the outskirts of the world operate on an international level? My answer is that one must work closely with local institutions, both private companies and official institutions, and try to solve the problems they encounter. As seen from a set of cases, these problems and their solutions are of interest for publication on an international arena.

This article discusses the regional in the international by studying the regularity and logistic of football players in Sogndal FC. We look especially at the use of local, national and international players in the club for the last 30 years. Key findings: The use of local players has decreased significantly while the use of national and international players has increased. Sogndal is clearly influenced by global trends, and this puts pressure on the club’s development of local football players.

Norway was early on to develop Building and property management as a separate discipline. Since the first R & D projects in the 1970s, a number of tools and standards are developed. Several of them have formed the pattern for international standardization. In these processes, the Norwegian academic community has played a central role. The article provides a review of the subject history in Norway and highlights some of the national standardization work that has gained international importance.

Small businesses in high-tech industries can be at a disadvantage when it comes to accessing research to compete within their own industries. Using a Design Science Research approach, we develop the concept of a Massive Open Online Network and implement a prototype that aims to support knowledge sharing among formal and informal persons, groups and organisations. We contribute novel knowledge in design principles and prototype that can be applied to support co-creation and innovation.

IT Forum Sogn & Fjordane is a 20-year-old regional collaborative network involving private and public sectors, as well as R&D institutions. The informants in this study describe the network as a governing body, a cooperative network that promotes the county, and a meeting place for IT people. International and national impulses and activities laid the foundation for this network, which is referred to as an example of the Sogn and Fjordane model: solving regional challenges together.

The Norwegian Directorate of Health recommends that patients with community nursing must be assessed for nutritional risk once a month in National Professional Guidelines for preventing and treating undernutrition. The purpose of this paper is to highlight how international science interacts on screening practice of older patients in home care settings in Norway with Ernæringsjournal, MNA and NUFFE. National transformations occur related to international knowledge when choosing a screening-tool.

In the last decade, the immigration to Norway has increased noticeably. This was the reason why four municipalities in Sogn og Fjordane county decided to improve their digital services and web pages for this target group. To analyze this improvement process, the article draws on learning theories and institutional theories. An important finding is that the improvements resulted in more user-friendly services for all inhabitants, not only for the immigrants.

This article is about health care complaints and changes in the rules of appeal in Norway. Changes in the complaint rules in Norway have not resulted in significantly better legal protection for patients.

By using the two concepts organizational and professional accountability we interpret what eight leaders and clinicians tell about how they handle being held accountable after a patient suicide. The study reveals that leaders and clinicians have different views on what accountability is. Accountability to the leaders, as opposed to the clinicians, seem to be something they can deliver and be in control of by using mandatory procedures made by the health government to handle serious unwanted incidents.

This study explores how immigrant youth in Norway navigate video games between local and global contexts and how this shapes their identities. Drawing from theories of transnationalism, gender and technology, the study employs qualitative methodologies that unravel complex identity manifestations that are globally connected but locally anchored. Rather than an often-used dual frame of reference, the authors suggest interpreting this through a multiple frame of reference.

This paper draws attention to the mobility of young people who move abroad in the context of pupil’s exchange. It focuses on peer groups and the effect of compatriot peer relations in the host country. Compatriot peer relations play a multifaceted role during mobility. They help pupils tackle the challenges of the new situations and ease the costs of social investment, but they may also function as a cultural trap, preventing the mobile young from embracing the new culture and new relations.

The article discusses results from an intensive language and cultural education program, combining classroom teaching with participation in «Norwegian» everyday and holiday activities. Participants were motivated for the intensive education program and enjoyed learning through role-plays. The program provided good opportunities for language practice and learning. However, the program was clearly best adapted to participants with good prerequisites for language learning.

Møre and Romsdal is historically an innovative and internationally oriented region, which is dependent on a workforce that can act entrepreneurially, be innovative within existing companies and cultivate connections with international markets. This study explores whether students at NTNU in Aalesund are up for the task. The findings are promising for Møre and Romsdal and indicate that students have quite positive attitudes towards both entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, as well as towards international mobility.

The aim of the study is to gain an insight into the preferences of the future workforce in the region. Through focus group interviews and a survey, we examine the most important factor for students when reflecting upon future workplaces and whether there are differences in these in terms of gender and regionally oriented and internationally oriented students. The findings have important implications for recruitment in regions that are facing issues in terms of brain drain.

This study examines consumer preferences for cod fillet. Adaptive conjoint analysis was used to analyze important product attributes. Information on consumer attitudes, subjective knowledge, consumption behavior, and expectations to taste and quality was also collected. Price, country of origin, place of purchase and condition are the most important attributes. Age is positively related to attitudes and purchase likelihood. Results can be used for product development purposes.

The study analyses the effects of consumers’ country-of-origin image perception (COOI) and ethnocentrism on brand equity for the bachalau brand Dybvik. A survey of 333 respondents is analysed by using PLS-SEM in order to answer the following research question: Does COOI and ethnocentrism positively influence the home market brand equity for the brand Dybvik? Both variables positively effects the perceived brand equity, but in different degree on the various underlying dimensions of the equity.

The article uses dimensions of proximity as an analytical tool to understand how structural changes in the maritime industry affect the process of innovation. Access to the problem definition is identified as important for the process. The importance of changes in ownership in the supplier industry and changes in composition of the workforce are discussed. These are linked and represent a change in a field that traditionally has been important for the innovation processes in the industry.

The backshoring phenomenon has recently prompted wide attention among academics and practitioners in Western countries. Based on case studies in the Norwegian offshore cluster, we provide insights on how knowledge-building in production is affected by advanced automation and technology implementation, when embarking on backshoring. The intent of this study is to explore potential knowledge-related challenges that businesses may encounter when production return to its home location.

In recent years, we have increased awareness of the concept of backshoring, which involves bringing back activities that have previously been relocated to low cost locations. This article discusses this development in light of cluster theory. We present reflections based on data collection carried out in three regional clusters. The findings show that significant costs are incurred in offshored manufacturing, and that several advantages has been achieved by moving production back to the region.