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Summary of conference contributions

Patries Boekholt

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Where we started off

• The arranged marriage suggests we take a good look at each other. The conference was a first flirtation.

• The innovation system approach asks for a good policy mix that addresses the bottlenecks in the system

• We can’t rely on fixing the individual ‘boxes’ in the system: policy has to shift to bridging between the boxes

• End of pipe solutions are not sufficient to tackle today’s problems

• While we usually look at input and output additionality in evaluations, the behavioural additionalities are as important

• We need to aim at changing capabilities and skills

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Do innovation policy incentives make a difference?

• Yes,…... No,……..We don’t know

• No: private R&D went up, while public R&D incentives went down.

• Yes: evaluations and studies show:• S&T collaboration correlates positively with economic results and public funding of

this collaboration has added value

• Publicly funded R&D projects have a higher research component than privately sponsored R&D projects

• Yes, but: we need to look at the interplay between incentives in the innovation system

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There is a lot we don’t know

• The ‘soft factors’ of innovation are crucial for economic success

• Thus behavioural additionality aspect of success of incentives should be taken on board

• Yet we are not capable of ‘measuring’ these

• Additionality as a test: leads to narrow definition of ‘what works’

• Fundamental methodological problems in measuring socio-economic impacts

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What have we learnt from environmental policies?

• Environmental technology policies have similar ‘additionality’ patterns

• Finding the right balance between • Programmes that support incremental innovations: ‘the safe route’

• Integrated approaches that push radical paradigm shifts: ‘the risky route’

• Here the behavioural factor is even more important

• Who are the drivers for sustainable solutions?

• Where’s the money?

• There are good practices of environmental technology programmes

• No ‘mainstreaming’

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The focus of the two spheres so far

Firms

(consumer)demand

research

innovation policies

Innovation policy

Environmental Policy

technology policies

regulationstandards

publicdemand

Changing mindsets

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Open questions

• How do we create a ‘sense of urgency’ with innovation policy makers regarding sustainability problems?

• The institutional barriers in the public sector are a major impediment: innovation of policy

• We need strategic intelligence to understand how to change mindsets in businesses: but what is this exactly?

• Will the marriage between the two enhance the market orientation of sustainability policies?

• The incremental approach of most environmental technology programmes is not sufficient to address the issues: we need paradigm shifts

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Points of discussion

• Stimulating the large block of firms to produce more sustainable is the real problem:• Institutional barriers

• Barriers within firms

• What can be learnt from strategic intelligence and related instruments (foresight, benchmarking, technology assessment, technology roadmapping)?

• Incremental or revolutionary: what does it mean for policy implementation?• Lessons from innovation system perspective?

• Experiences within the environmental scene ?