Marina Ranga

Triple Helix systems: an analytical framework for innovation policy and practice in the Knowledge Society

This paper introduces the concept of Triple Helix systems as an analytical construct that synthesizes the key features of university–industry–government (Triple Helix) interactions into an ‘innovation system’ format, defined according to systems theory as a set of components, relationships and functions. Among the components of Triple Helix systems, a distinction is made between (a) R&D and non-R&D innovators; (b) ‘single-sphere’ and ‘multi-sphere’ (hybrid) institutions; and (c) individual and institutional innovators. The relationships between components are synthesized into five main types: technology transfer; collaboration and conflict moderation; collaborative leadership; substitution; and networking. The overall function of Triple Helix systems – knowledge and innovation generation, diffusion and use – is realized through a set of activities in the knowledge, innovation and consensus spaces. This perspective provides an explicit framework for the systemic interaction between Triple Helix actors that was previously lacking, and a more fine-grained view of the circulation of knowledge flows and resources within and among the spaces, helping to identify existing blockages or gaps. From a Triple Helix systems perspective, the articulation and the non-linear interactions between the spaces can generate new combinations of knowledge and resources that can advance innovation theory and practice, especially at the regional level.

Pathways to the entrepreneurial university: towards a global convergence

This paper analyzes the transition to the entrepreneurial university as part of a broader shift to a knowledge-based economy, arising from a complex interplay between exogenous (top-down) and endogenous factors (bottom-up) of a more or less similar nature, combined in different ways in different countries. Drawing on the experience of four countries (US, Sweden, Japan and Brazil) with different institutional trajectories and degrees of academic entrepreneurial transformation, under varying degrees of state control and levels of university initiative, we argue that a global convergence is currently taking shape toward entrepreneurial universities playing a central role in a knowledgebased economy that moves beyond etatism and pure market relations to an intermediate position within a triple helix regime. The role of public venture capital in financing the transition to the entrepreneurial university and its possible interventions in a counter-cyclical business model, which is also active in periods of economic downturn, are also discussed.

Athena in the World of Techne: The Gender Dimension of Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Long confined to the realm of feminist studies, issues pertaining to women’s access, participation, advancement and reward are rising to prominence in innovation, technology and entrepreneurship –areas traditionally characterised either by gender-blindness or male dominance. The implications of this shift are wide-ranging but the mechanisms by which it takes place are little known. We Discuss causes of the relatively small numbers of women scientists, researchers, innovators or entrepreneurs, the exceedingly slow pace of transition from inequality to equality and the usually lower hierarchical positions than men’s in academia or business, women’s hidden roles in technological change and an exemplary instance of women’s leading role in a major technological innovation with wide social impact, in the context of major changes arising in the transition from the Industrial to the Knowledge Society.

Whither the university? The Novum Trivium and the transition from industrial to knowledge society

Beyond the Bologna Process key objective of achieving a common structure of the European tertiary educational format is the fundamental issue of the changing content of higher education. The highly specialized curricula of the Industrial Society no longer fully meet the needs of an emerging Knowledge Society that requires citizens with entrepreneurial and inter-cultural capabilities to innovate and respond to change in an increasingly inter-connected world. In this article we propose an innovative approach to undergraduate education called the Novum Trivium, comprised of (i) academic specialization, (ii) innovation and entrepreneurship, and (iii) a language and culture in addition to one’s own, as a new higher-education paradigm for the Knowledge Society. This vision of undergraduate education aims to contribute to the realization of the Bologna Process objective of better integrating education, research and innovation. The Novum Trivium brings together three diverse, yet complementary, educational skill sets, in a modern version of the Tripos degree introduced by Cambridge University in the 17th century as an honours degree in mathematics that eventually became a format that encompassed three closely related disciplines such as politics, philosophy and economics. The Novum Trivium is also inspired by the medieval Trivium of grammar, rhetoric and dialectics (logic), the essential elements of education for all.

A trans-Keynesian vision of innovation for the contemporary economic crisis: 'picking winners' revisited

We argue that the current economic crisis is a fault line in the transition from an industrial to a knowledge-based society and is thus potentially subject to a different set of dynamics than previous crises, like the Great Depression of the 1930s, which occurred within an existing mode of production. A qualitatively different response is needed to address the current downturn: one that puts in place new drivers for long-term knowledge-based economic renewal and growth. Keynesian methods, are no longer sufficient. Large-scale targeted government intervention in the innovation system and support to knowledge-based firms, technologies, products and services are required to compensate for declining innovation support from the private sector and boost economic growth. ‘Picking winners’ approaches that proved successful during World War II and afterwards need to be revisited, to hasten recovery from the current economic crisis and manage the transition to a knowledge-based regime. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.

Great Expectations: An Innovation Solution to the Contemporary Economic Crisis

The causes and cures of the contemporary economic crisis have been a matter of intense debate since 2007–2008, but the persisting signs of decline in virtually all economic sectors question the effectiveness of the measures adopted so far. Stimulus packages have been the most common policy tool for government intervention aimed to revive economic growth, but their success is difficult to assess, and is further complicated by political considerations and an insufficient time frame to observe longer-term results. The cautious approach adopted by many governments, focusing mostly on less resource-intensive and austerity policy measures, has failed to bring about the expected recovery, and now there is a growing call for a bold government intervention to spur economic growth. The papers selected for this Special Issue emphasize a number of ideas that we believe are essential in promoting an innovation-based solution to the economic crisis: (i) targeted and integrated innovation policies are an essential complement to the structural and financial adjustments proposed so far as solutions to the crisis; (ii) large-scale government funding, combined with international donor resources, is needed to secure the investment necessary for the growth of new industries with high job creation potential, and to encourage private investors to follow suit; and (iii) valuable lessons can be drawn from the experience of the past and used to inspire policy actions in the present.

Innovation, politics and tanks: the emergence of a Triple Helix system in Ukraine and the influence of EU cooperation on its development

This paper examines the emergence of a Triple Helix system in Ukraine and the ways in which EU cooperation influenced its development. Among six main forms of EU cooperation, the Framework Programmes appear to have been the most significant, and their influence was most visible in the Knowledge and Consensus spaces and least visible in the Innovation space. Synergies between national and EU policies and resources are critical for transforming the existing industry-government and university-government dyads into a functional university-industry-government triadic partnership and a dynamic Triple Helix system. Stronger connections between the more advanced Knowledge and Consensus spaces can also catalyse the development of the weaker Innovation space. For the consolidation of a Triple Helix system, it is essential that the cooperation with the EU be resumed and scaled up, bringing Ukraine not only closer to Europe, but also to the whole democratic world. Only then the logic of innovation will outweigh the logic of tanks.

Stimulating R&D and Innovation to Address Romania's Economic Crisis: A Bridge Too Far?

This paper discusses the effects of the global crisis on the Romanian economy, in general, and the R&D and innovation system, in particular, and the set of anti-crisis measures that the government adopted in the attempt to contain the damage. Notably absent from the anti-crisis package were measures in support of R&D and innovation, a sector that was heavily affected by the crisis and that could have had a significant potential to contribute to the economic recovery, if supported by adequate policies and funding schemes. We argue that, learning from the missed opportunities of the recent years, bold and integrated measures in support of R&D and innovation need to be adopted in the country in the short to medium term, in order to speed up the economic recovery and realize a significant national and regional innovation potential that has been largely underexploited so far. The “creative destruction” (Schumpeter (1942) Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy (New York: Harper)) in the R&D and innovation system triggered by the crisis could thus catalyse an ample process of creative reconstruction and provide an opportunity for renewal and improvement that is too good to miss.

From a Nascent to a Mature Regional Innovation System: What Drives the Transition?

While regional innovation systems (RIS) saw a relative development in many European countries in recent years due to decentralisation policies, they are at an early stage in Turkey, a unitary state with a strong centralised system rooted in the administrative structures of the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish region of Izmir was the first in the country to elaborate its own Regional Innovation Strategy in 2012 and achieved considerable improvements in its R&D and innovation capacity, based on the strategy’s recommendations. What are the key factors driving the transition from a nascent to a mature RIS, and how can the transition be further enhanced? This paper aims to answer these questions by examining the Izmir RIS from the fine-grained perspective of the Triple Helix Systems concept, which sees regional innovation as the result of the interplay between a Knowledge Space, an Innovation Space and a Consensus Space. The spaces co-evolve in a multitude of ways and directions as a non-linear process and provide a detailed view of regional actors, knowledge flows and interactions between them, and the resources available, in view of identifying existing blockages or gaps and formulating policy recommendations. The picture provided by the Triple Helix Spaces is complemented, for a more comprehensive approach, with insights drawn from three other RIS typologies based on integration into internal and external environments, regional barriers to innovation, and regional development stage. We conclude that the key factor driving these improvements was the presence of high-impact national and regional R&D, innovation and entrepreneurship policies that have been implemented in a relatively well-defined Triple Helix System. Izmir’s Triple Helix System features a more advanced Knowledge Space with a comprehensive, high-density institutional structure and a solid knowledge base, a younger but fast developing Innovation Space, with an increasing number of technology transfer offices, technoparks and innovation-support institutions, and a thinner, yet active Consensus Space promoting regional networking and collaborative leadership. For a successful transition to a mature RIS, policy and practice in the next stages need to focus on reducing fragmentation and strengthening the systemic linkages between the three Spaces.

Smart specialization as a strategy to develop early-stage regional innovation systems

ABSTRACT This paper discusses the role of smart specialization in catalyzing the development of early-stage regional innovation systems in less advanced regions, either by facilitating the emergence of some defining elements that were lacking or accelerating the development of others, such as: a regional knowledge base and a dynamic learning process, institutional structures, network integration mechanisms among key innovation actors, regional industrial specializations, and collective identities. The paper exemplifies this process with the case of Romania, a country where the research and innovation system is centralized at national level and regional innovation systems are in the early days. The transformations taking place in the Romanian regions within the process of implementing smart specialization, assisted by the European Commissions Joint Research Centre in the project “Targeted Support to Smart Specialization in Romania”, suggest a dynamic coagulation of institutional, financial, policy, and human factors that catalyzed the development of regional innovation systems in the country and introduced a novel approach to innovation policy.