Innovation and creative capacity are at the very foundation of regional economic development. Competing in the international knowledge-based economy demands products, services and processes that are better--in quality and/or price--than those produced elsewhere. Businesses, entrepreneurs, and creative workers must be able to access information on better ways of doing things, and develop their own unique approaches, if a region is to maximize its development potential. This report draws from research in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) that was part of a national project on the Social Foundations of Innovation in City Regions, led by David Wolfe at the University of Toronto. The national project highlighted how innovation, talent attraction and retention, and governance are linked in providing the foundations for economic competitiveness. All too often research on policy and practices for economic development focuses on the activities of individual firms, their markets, technology and access to capital, without acknowledging the social factors that create the conditions for economic success.