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Innovation studies are at the forefront of contemporary applied research with public authorities funding annual evaluation of regional and national innovation performance. Numerous innovation indexes are introduced providing the track of innovation trajectories within multiple dimensions. The current study focuses on the multi-level assessment of territorial innovation system capacity. The research methodology is designed to enable the comparison of national and regional level innovation systems. The evaluation procedure is held across 15 individual indicators structured in five dimensions: human resources, infrastructure, research, innovative milieu, framework conditions. The indicators selected are available for international comparisons in the context of country-region assessment. The research scope is the Baltic region - one of the most innovative macro-region in the world. The study results confirm the strong polarization of the Baltic region in terms of innovation potential and its development dynamics. Lithuania - one of the least performing national innovation systems in 2012, has considerably improved its potential by 2017. The innovation capacity of the North-Western Federal District of the Russian Federation is a third higher than the national average, making it the growth pole of the national innovation system. Top-performing territorial innovation systems are characterized by a strong convergence of all dimensions analyzed. The policy recommendations drawn from the study argue for the coherent development of all aspects of innovation development, ensuring their synergy and cross-fertilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article defines the modalities of ecclesiastic law studies, the course that was introduced in 1835 at legal departments of Russian universities, including that of the University of Dorpat (Yuriev) The example of the Chair of Ecclesiastic Law showcases the special status of the University of Dorpat (Yuriev), which was not subject to university charters of 1804, 1835, 1863 and 1884 The major tracks of religious policy in the Baltic region and the real religious landscape that had an impact on education are studied in the context of the work of M E Krasnozhen, a professor at the Chair of Ecclesiastic Law [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the finding of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)-virus in indigenous Ixodes ricinus (L.), 'Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis' in exotic Ixodes frontalis (Panzer) and Rickettsia aeshlimannii in exotic Hyalomma marginatum Koch subadult ticks detached from 18.5% (107/577) infested migratory birds in the Baltic region of Russia. This is the first record of human pathogenic 'Candidatus N. mikurensis' in I. frontalis ticks. Moreover, seven other pathogens were identified in I. ricinus ticks. Spotted Fever Group rickettsiae were the predominant pathogen group and were detected only in nymphs. Future investigations are warranted to further characterize the role of birds in the epizootiology of tick-borne pathogens in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic indicators are essential for policy making. In transition economies and in Russia in particular, both the quality of data and their comparability are subject to criticism, This phenomenon is particularly observable for the Kaliningrad region, which is currently at the centre of discussions between the European Union and the Russian Federation. At present, many observers and policy makers are dissatisfied with the existing figures. The objective of this paper is to fill part of the gap and to give an economic image of the Russian enclave, on the basis of five years of fieldwork. We concentrate on the assessment of Kaliningrad's trading openness and its economic development level. In a first section, we reassess the trading position of the region taking into account its geographical location. Second, we give an appraisal of the unrecorded economy of the enclave and reassess regional production. Finally, we make Gross Regional Product comparable with other countries and reassess the region's GRP in purchasing power parity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]