Innovative development of the Russian north in the context of integration of the country's economic space

In the context of increasing geopolitical instability, and transiting the world economy to a new technological order, the transformation of its export-raw material model of economy and the transition to innovative development path are already a critical task for modern Russia. These issues are especially relevant for the northern territories of the country which have a huge natural resource and geostrategic potential. Their economy is based on mining. There was a tendency to further primitivize its structure in the post-Soviet period. At the same time, the experience of the developed countries (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Canada, etc.) shows that the northern territories can be innovative development centers not only at the national, but also at the global level. In thisregard, it is necessary to create favorable institutional, organizational and economic conditions for the integration and development of the scientific and technological potential of the country’s northern regions. The purpose of the work is to study the features of innovative development of the Russian North in the context of integration of the economic space. The author has considered theoretical and methodological aspects, and carries out a critical analysis of the innovative development experience of the world’s northern regions. Based on this, the article identifies the key principles, conditions and factors of dynamic development of the innovation centers in the Nordic countries. At the present stage, the innovative development analysis of the Russian North has shown that the key problems are the destruction of the region’s human potential from the very initial stages of the innovation cycle, low inventive and innovative activity, insufficient funding for research and development by both the state and the private sector, low quality of the existing institutional and organizational structure of the innovation complex. The researcher has analyzed the programs and projects of innovative development of the Russian North within consolidation of scientific and technological potential of the region’s various subjects of the region. The author has proved the conceptual directions for ensuring innovative development of the northern regions in the context of their integration into the country’s economic space.