News from the IPL
INTRODUCTION
This newsletter is published by The Innovation Policy Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto, and sponsored by the Ministry of Research and Innovation. The views and ideas expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Ontario Government.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
President Bust Announces the American Competitiveness Initiative
In his State Of The Union Address, President Bush announced The American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) to encourage American innovation and strengthen the U.S.’ ability to compete in the global economy. This strategy aims to increase Federal investment in critical research to ensure that the United States continues to lead the world in opportunity and innovation. The American Competitiveness Initiative commits $5.9 billion in FY 2007, and more than $136 billion over 10 years, to increase investments in research and development (R&D), strengthen education, and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. The supporting policy document is provided below.
Editor's Pick
ICT Toronto: An ICT Cluster Development Strategy for the Toronto Region
Impact Group
This strategy aims to improve the long-term competitiveness of the Toronto Region’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector so that it continues to be a leading source of employment and wealth creation. The project is a joint undertaking of the City of Toronto and the Ontario and federal governments, the ICT industry and municipal governments in the region. The Toronto Region ICT sector is one of the region’s largest private sector employers with a core of around 3,300 firms and 148,000 employees. Annual sales are estimated to be in the $30 to $35 billion range and upwards, with exports in the neighbourhood of $6 billion. It is also the 3rd largest ICT sector in North America, behind San Francisco and New York, based on employment. ICT is a fast-growing industry and an “enabling sector” that allows other industries to improve their productivity and to grow. It makes a substantial contribution to the region’s tax base. However, the sector is facing challenges to its future competitiveness. This report presents a strategy to support and promote the competitiveness of the Toronto Region in ICT.
Innovation Policy
American Competitiveness Initiative: Leading the World in Innovation
US Domestic Policy Council, Office of Science and Technology Policy
This document outlines the basis for and plans for the American Competitiveness Initiative, announced by President Bush during his State of the Union address. It focuses on supporting scientific advancement and innovation through a variety of action points. The initiatives outlined include a commitment to federal investment in basic research, in the large-scale tools of science, providing a high quality education system geared towards promoting innovation at all levels, the improvement of workforce training initiatives, an immigration policy designed to attract and integrate the best and brightest, the promotion of private sector investment in R&D, an IP regime that protects the fruits of innovation, and a business environment that stimulates and encourages entrepreneurship.
Proceedings of Mini-Conference in Honour of Keith Pavitt
UNU-MERIT recently held a mini-conference and debate on the status of science, technology and innovation policy in Europe and world-wide, to commemorate the work of the late Keith Pavitt. Four papers are available online: “The Relationships between Science, Technologies and Their Industrial Exploitation” – by Giovanni Dosi; “A Knowledge Economy Paradigm and its Consequences” – by Luc Soete; “Changing Patterns of Usefulness of University Research: Opportunities and Dangers” – by Keith Pavitt; “The different channels of university-industry knowledge transfer: Empirical evidence from Biomedical Engineering” – by Bart Verspagen et al.
EU Director General for Research
This report has been produced by an expert group, set up by the Directorate General Research of the European Commission (EC), in order to identify and define possible measures and actions at the national and European level to promote the role of foundations and the non-profit sector in boosting public and private investment in R&D. There are obstacles and disincentives which inhibit giving by individuals and corporations, and which hinder the flow of more funds from foundations and the non-profit sector to research, or hamper a more effective use of existing funds. Unleashing this potential calls for a mix of initiatives by foundations themselves, of national actions, and, where appropriate, of EC support.
Cities, Clusters & Regions
The Activity of American Venture Capital Funds in the Ontario Market: Issues, Trends and Prospects
Thompson MacDonald for the Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity
This report focuses on the emerging role of American venture capital funds and other foreign investors in financing high growth companies and innovative sectors in Ontario’s venture capital market. It has been written in the interest of achieving a better understanding of cross-border activity in the province, and prospects for increasing this activity in future. American investors gave greatest emphasis to the business case for activity in the Ontario and Québec markets, based on quality venture capital deal flow emerging from local technology sector clusters, as well as the R&D/innovation systems and the education/skills base (e.g., well qualified technicians and technologists) that support these. However there are some barriers – the primary challenge to doing deals in Ontario and Québec pertain to a range of tax issues that arise when undertaking cross-border activity anywhere in Canada. Many of these derive from provisions, or interpretations of provisions, in the Canada-United States Tax Convention, relating in some cases to the fund structure of the foreign investor (e.g., treatment of limited liability corporations), and in others to the nature of the domestic investee. This report investigates these issues, and more, in an effort to promote increased investment from the US.
Social Capital & Networks
This paper studies the effect of inter-firm R&D network ties on the technological performance of companies in high-tech industries. Tie strength is analyzed through a multidimensional perspective. It finds that strong ties in terms of the dimensions time and depth, measured by length and multitude of partnerships, degree of cooperation and similarity of ties, do indeed improve technological performance. However, findings on cultural closeness support a weak ties perspective. The research suggests that a combination of stronger and weaker R&D ties, with elements of both social embeddedness and international diversity, is most beneficial for the technological performance of companies.
Knowledge Integration and Network Formation
Muge Ozman
This paper highlights how inter-firm collaboration networks are influenced by the knowledge composition of goods in an industry. For this purpose, it uses an agent based simulation study in which firms integrate their competencies under different knowledge base regimes. In this way networks form. The results reveal that, knowledge regime significantly influences the network structure, and interaction among firms is very intensive when the products are specialized but also have common knowledge among them.
Statistics & Indicators
Conference on Canada’s Competitiveness and Prosperity 
Ottawa, 10 March, 2006
The conference will feature the release of the Report on Canada 2006 by the Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity. Roger Martin, Chairman of the Institute and Dean of the Joseph L. Rotman School of Management will release the findings of this key annual report on Canada’s current and future levels of competitiveness and prosperity. For the balance of the conference we will present and discuss ideas from various perspectives on Canada’s economic opportunities and challenges. Confirmed panelists include: Brian Crowley (Executive Director, Atlantic Institute for Market Studies), Don Drummond (Senior Vice President and Chief Economist TD Bank Financial Group), Heather Munroe-Blum (Principal, McGill University), David Johnston (President, University of Waterloo), Deborah Roseveare (Sr Economist, Head of Canada desk, OECD), Claude Seguin (Sr Vice President, CGI), Andrew Sharpe (Executive Director, Centre for the Study of Living Standards) and Jim Stanford (Economist, Canadian Auto Workers). The incoming federal Ministers of Finance, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, and Industry have also been invited. This conference is a unique and timely opportunity to hear and discuss the key competitiveness and prosperity challenges facing the incoming government.
Stuttgart, 30-31 March, 2006
The conference on 30 March is a key event of the RegStrat project co-funded by the European Commission’s Regions of Knowledge 2 Programme and co-ordinated by SEZ. This event brings together policy researchers and practitioners from different fields of strategic policy intelligence (SPI – foresight, technology assessment and road-mapping, evaluation, benchmarking etc.) with policy-makers from Europe’s regions. The participants will examine and discuss the state of the art of related policy research and methodology, as well as the practical use of SPI tools in regional policy-making. Please visit RegStrat website for further information and possible cooperation in the framework of the project. The MLP Regional Foresight Workshop on 31 March is implemented in the framework of the Mutual Learning Platform (MLP), a joint initiative by DG Enterprise and Industry, DG Research, DG Regional Policy and the Committee of the Regions, and supported by the IRE Secretariat. The aim of the initiative is to develop concrete policy tools that can be applied by regional policy-makers. In case of foresight it focuses on reviewing and promoting practical knowledge on incentives, benefits and impacts of conducting foresight exercises in a regional context. The workshop is thought as a follow-up to the discussions from the first MLP foresight workshop (October 2005) as well as the RegStat conference. This event focuses on the practical aspects and impacts of regional foresight. The process and the lessons learned are addressed to regional policy-makers, foresight managers, practitioners, users and stakeholders of policy-making organisations in European regions.
Ottawa, 16 – 17 May, 2006
The Statistics Canada Socio-economic Conference provides an annual forum for empirical research focusing on issues of concern to Canadian public policy. The conference focuses on studies discussing: emerging economic trends and their underlying causes;
and the social implications of economic trends and the ability of various groups to participate in the economy. Topics relevant to the Conference include, but are not restricted to, innovation; productivity; international trade; agriculture; environment-economy linkages; natural resources and energy; transportation; industrial development; urban and rural development; health; education; families; income and wealth and their distribution; and labour markets. The Conference focuses on studies directly relevant to Canada, while at the same time welcoming comparative international studies that shed light on Canadian public policy issues. It places a premium on empirical studies making innovative use of Canadian data.
Atlanta Conference on S&T Policy
Atlanta, 18-20 May, 2006
Both the U.S. and Europe see innovation as central to the future growth and vitality of their economies. Policies to encourage innovation need to lead in institutional learning and change across sectors. This conference explores the research base that informs those policies, in current international context. It aims to stimulate dialog among policy makers, analysts, and scholars, covering both what we know and what we need to know to frame effective science and technology policies and to help advance the research agenda of the field. Proposals for papers and sessions are due February 1.
Toronto, 5-6 June, 2006
The 2006 Ontario R&E Summit being hosted by ORION and MaRS and being held in the new MaRS Discovery District Collaboration Centre. This event is promoted as “Ontario’s definitive annual gathering for the research and education community, inspiring innovation through collaboration technologies and expertise”. MaRS is a non-profit corporation aimed at improving commercial outcomes from Canada’s foundation of science and technology innovation. The Collaboration Centre, opened last May, is a “convergence innovation centre” located in Toronto’s refurbished and hip Discovery District.
Changing Foresight Practices in Regional Development: Global Pressures and Regional Possibilities
Turku, Finland, 7-9 June, 2006
The future of regions is dependent on proactive interaction between companies, universities and public actors. The aim of the conference is to discuss the different strategic possibilities of regions under the rapidly changing pressures of globalizing world. The key questions are: How regional actors can cope in a global economy? What are the new ways to study and explore the future of regions? How to enhance regional co-operation and networking? What are the strategic keys to prosperous regional futures? Does creativity strengthen regions? How general foresight and development theories can strengthen regional development in practice? How companies can shape their regional strategies in globalizing economy? The conference will consist of several keynote addresses and parallel sessions.
Athens, Greece, 11-14 June, 2006
The 2006 International Society for Professional Innovation Management (ISPIM) Conference will be held in Athens this summer. Many topics will be discussed such as: academic-industry networks for innovation, learning and the entrepreneurial mindset, managing knowledge, SMEs: opportunities & threats, public policy to stimulate networks. Deadline for submitting an abstract: January 27, 2006.
9th Uddevalla Symposium 2006: Entrepreneurship and Development – Local Processes and Global Patterns
Fairfax, Virginia, 15-17 June, 2006
The conference organizing committee will be accepting abstracts until the 28th of February, 2006. Keep checking the conference website for more news and information.
International Conference on Technology Policy and Innovation: Science, Society and Sustainability
Santorini, Greece, 18-21 June, 2006
The choice of the ICTPI Greece 2006 theme, “Science, Society and Sustainability” was based on the outcomes of the recent national Technology Foresight (TF) exercize (Greece 2001-2021), emphasizing these three key factors and their interactions as critical for the emergence of a knowledge-based economy and society. Scholars interested in presenting at this conference should submit a paper for consideration before March 15, 2006.
Innovation, Competition and Growth: Shumpeterian Perspectives
Sphoia-Antipolis, 22-24 June, 2006
Recent developments in economics have gone from the recognition of the importance of innovation (early studies of innovation, exogenous growth models) to the exploration of innovation mechanisms (more refined microeconomic and sectoral studies of innovation) to the incorporation into economic models of the results of the previous research (endogenous growth, evolutionary models). An important lesson to be drawn from all this research is that a purely macro-based analysis of growth is not enough. The ISS 2006 conference aims at favouring dialogue amongst open minded researchers sharing a common interest in innovation and in the work of Schumpeter. The following subjects provide examples of topics about which the dialogue could be especially fruitful. The growing importance of knowledge and of human capital, increasing returns and path dependence, the role of variety in economic growth, the role of time and importance of business history, the co-evolution of technology and institutions, the economics of agglomeration are just some examples of subjects that will be discussed at this years event.
The Future of Science Technology and Innovation Policy
Sussex, 11-13 September, 2006
This conference, besides celebrating the 40th Anniversary of SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research), offers the opportunity to engage in a critical evaluation of the present and future research agenda of the Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) field. This conference seeks to explore empirical, theoretical and applied policy approaches that can enable us to conceptualize the contradictory nature of modern science and technology and innovation, and thus provide practical policy guidance. Such a conference is particularly timely because many of the existing conceptual frameworks are apparently undergoing a period of what Kuhn called ‘normal science’ where their assumptions are rarely questioned, and where they are institutionally and academically isolated from criticism. We aim to identify fruitful new ways forward in the field of STI policy by subjecting these established frameworks to structured debate and critical evaluation. The conference will be organised in the form of plenary sessions, parallel sessions and set debates. It will cover a series of broad themes. These include: Ownership, Accountability and Relevance of Science – for example, the deficiencies of peer review, the pros and cons of patenting in universities, the shifting boundary between public and private knowledge, and processes for allocating resources between disciplines. Technology, Security and Sustainability – for example, the dual relationship between technology and security, changing environment and energy policy, the balance between sustainability and growth, and the role of technology in sustainable development. Dynamics of Innovation Interfaces – for example, the management and dynamics of innovation across different levels (such as individuals, groups, firms, sectors, networks and systems), user-centred innovation processes vs. producer-centred innovation processes, and the connection between innovation and entrepreneurship.
Blue Sky II: What Indicators for Science, Technology and Innovation Policies in the 21st Century?
Ottawa, 25-27 September, 2006
This forum will examine new areas for indicator development and set a broad agenda for future work on science, technology and innovation (STI) indicators. Emphasis will be placed on indicators of outcomes and impacts in order to support monitoring, benchmarking, foresight activity, and evaluation, applied to policies and programs, and their economic and social impacts. The Forum is expected to provide ideas and guidance for indicators work in both OECD and non OECD countries, as well as in their international organizations. The Forum will include plenary sessions featuring invited guest speakers who are leading authorities in their fields. Break-out sessions will discuss papers on specific themes selected through a call for papers.
New Generation Innovation: New Approaches and Policy Designs – Call for papers
Atlanta, 27-29 September, 2006
Particular areas of interest include: new developments in university-industry relationships, new strategies for technology-based local and regional economic development, technology transfer to and from the public sector, trajectories for emerging technologies. All session proposals, paper proposals and abstracts should be submitted electronically not later than Friday, May 12, 2006.
The 9th Annual Conference of the Competitiveness Institute (TCI): The Role of Cluster Governance and Companies’ Involvement in Clusters Initiatives
Lyon, France, 9-13 October, 2006
The goal of this conference is to share ideas, build alliances and explore the best modes of economic development. Additionally information is offered about specific clusters, introductory courses on cluster theory and presentations given by an array of world experts (academics, businesses and institutions).The main topics include competitiveness, innovation, cluster initiatives, industrial organization and corporate change. The theme of the 9th conference will be “Governance and business involvement in cluster initiatives”.
Events
World Knowledge Competitiveness Index 2005
Robert Huggins Associates
The World Knowledge Competitiveness Index (WKCI) is an integrated and overall benchmark of the knowledge capacity, capability and sustainability of 125 regions across the globe. It also looks at the extent to which this knowledge is translated into economic value, and transferred into the wealth of the citizens of these regions, utilizing 19 knowledge economy benchmarks. These indicators include employment levels in the knowledge economy, patent registrations, R&D investment by private and public sectors, education expenditures, ICT infrastructure, and access to private equity.
European Innovation Scorecard 2005
The most recent iteration of the European Innovation Scorecard comes with a strengthened methodology and a revised list of 26 indicators. It confirms that Sweden , Finland and Switzerland are the European innovation leaders, followed by Germany and Denmark . Most of the new member States are engaged in the catching up process, however following a low rhythm that will not allow for short-term convergence in Europe . In addition, if these trends for the 25 Member States remain stable, the innovation gap with the US will not close within the next 50 years. The EIS 2005 comes with a new analysis of innovation efficiency, capturing how countries are good at transforming their innovation assets into innovation results (Innovation inputs and outputs) . Switzerland , Denmark , Germany , Ireland , Italy or the Netherlands are especially high performers in this respect. One possible explanation of their success is that most of them benefit from an above average innovation demand from their population, as measured by the Innobarometer 2005. A particular emphasis has also been given to 5 key dimensions of innovation, which are further explored in the EIS (innovation drivers, knowledge creation, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Applications, IPR) (Five key dimensions of innovation) . Some new evidences show that an even performance on all dimensions is a positive driver for a strong overall innovation performance, therefore suggesting to rather investing in areas of marked weaknesses.
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This newsletter is prepared by Jen Nelles.
Project manager is David A. Wolfe.