Issue #179
October 15, 2008
Search
the OREDI Newsletter
Subscriptions
& Comments
This newsletter is published by ONRIS at the Centre for International Studies, 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 [Table of Contents]
The Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance (CATA) recently hosted the exclusive Networked Vehicle Workshop in Toronto, bringing together executives from the U.S. and Canadian private sector, public sector, and academia to visualize the innovation of the next generation of cars -- "networked" vehicles. Partnering with the Government of Canada, the Toronto Regional Research Alliance (TRRA), Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE), and Gowlings, CATA facilitated the event through a series of business and technical sessions to produce a framework for the design and standardization of the networked vehicle.
Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) and the Government of Ontario launched a joint initiative recently to help small and medium-sized companies secure and create jobs by becoming more productive and more competitive. CME, backed by a $25-million investment by the provincial government, will be helping small and medium-sized manufacturers increase their competitiveness in the global economy through a new program called SMART.
EU Directorate General for Research Science, Economy and Society
In March 2000, the European Union adopted the Lisbon Strategy for Growth and Jobs, with the goal of becoming the world’s leading knowledge-based economy by 2010. As part of this Lisbon Agenda, the objective of a European Research Area (ERA) was endorsed. Many initiatives have been launched since then, but with new major global competitors emerging in science, technology and innovation (STI), the European Commission has responded with a renewed commitment to these goals and a European-wide consultation in the form of a Green Paper, ‘Inventing Our Future Together, The European Research Area: New Perspectives’. This Green Paper sets out the urgent need to revisit the European Research Area (ERA). It acknowledges that progress has been made
since 2000 and puts forward for debate a vision for ERA in which there should be more specialization, concentration and competition at the European level, balanced with better coordination, cooperation and access to knowledge throughout the EU. More
specifically, the Green Paper prioritizes six dimensions: (1) realizing a single labour market for researchers; (2) developing world-class research infrastructures; (3) strengthening research institutions; (4) sharing knowledge; (5) optimizing research programmes and priorities; and (6) opening to the world: international cooperation in Science and Technology. The fourth dimension, Sharing knowledge, gave a particular attention to the development of new channels and innovative approaches for communicating and discussing science, research and technology.
INNOVATION & RELATED POLICY [Table of Contents]
How Much Does Immigration Boost Innovation?
Jennifer Hunt and Marjolaine Gauthier-Loiselle, NBER
This paper measures the extent to which skilled immigrants increase innovation in the United States by exploring individual patenting behavior as well as state-level determinants of patenting. The 2003 National Survey of College Graduates shows that immigrants patent at double the native rate, and that this is entirely accounted for by their disproportionately holding degrees in science and engineering. These data imply that a one percentage point rise in the share of immigrant college graduates in the population increases patents per capita by 6%. This could be an overestimate of immigration's benefit if immigrant inventors crowd out native inventors, or an underestimate if immigrants have positive spill-overs on inventors. Using a 1950-2000 state panel, we show that natives are not crowded out by immigrants, and that immigrants do have positive spill-overs, resulting in an increase in patents per capita of about 15% in response to a one percentage point increase in immigrant college graduates. We isolate the causal effect by instrumenting the change in the share of skilled immigrants in a state with the initial share of immigrant high school dropouts from Europe, China and India. In both data sets, the positive impacts of immigrant post-college graduates and scientists and engineers are larger than for immigrant college graduates.
Open Innovation in Global Networks
OECD
To match the global demand and supply of innovation, businesses increasingly internationalize their innovation activities while opening their innovation process by collaborating with external partners (e.g., suppliers, customers, universities). This book examines what drives these global innovation networks across different industries, how they are related to companies' overall strategies, whether they are accessible for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and what the consequences are.
Innovation, Growth and Policy in Low and Medium Tech Industries: A Review of Recent Research
Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
This paper discusses and appraises recent research on so-called low-technology and medium-technology industries (LMT industries). The paper reviews a major research project conducted within the European Union’s FRAMEWORK 6 programme, called PILOT (Policy and Innovation in Low Tech). It gives an overview of the structure, content, and results of the PILOT project, and its implications for Australia.
CITIES, CLUSTERS & REGIONS [Table of Contents]
City Fiscal Conditions in 2008
National League of Cities
Anticipated declines in property tax, local sales tax and local income taxes combined with increased expenditures for energy and fuel, infrastructure, and employee-related costs have city finance officers anticipating worsening fiscal conditions over the next two years. Released this month this survey finds that in 2008, nearly two in three city finance officers reported that their cities are less able to meet fiscal needs compared to last year, particularly those cities that rely heavily upon property taxes. Moreover, nearly 80 percent of fiscal officers forecast even more troubling times ahead for 2009.
Growing Talent: Meeting the Evolving Needs of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Industry
University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute
The demand for highly qualified talent in Massachusetts' bioscience industry will add more than 10,000 life sciences workers to the state's workforce by 2014, according to this report , 81 percent of these new life sciences jobs are expected to require at least a four-year degree. In preparation for this need, the report identifies the key challenges for increasing the quality and number of potential employees in the state, as well as policy recommendations for future growth. Recommendations include initiatives to improve the training and experiences of the state's graduate, undergraduate, technical schools, and K-12 students.
STATISTICS & INDICATORS [Table of Contents]
European Inventory of Research and Innovation Policy Measures
ERAWATCH
The European Inventory of Research and Innovation Policy Measures has been created by the European Commission with the aim of facilitating access to research and innovation policies information within Europe and beyond. This joint inventory brings together national information and documentation on research and innovation policies, measures and programmes collected and presented by ERAWATCH and INNO-PolicyTrendChart.
The Global Competitiveness Report
World Economic Forum
The United States tops the overall ranking in this survey. Switzerland is in second position followed by Denmark, Sweden and Singapore. European economies continue to prevail in the top 10 with Finland, Germany and the Netherlands following suit. The United Kingdom, while remaining very competitive, has dropped by three places and out of the top 10, mainly attributable to a weakening of its financial markets. The rankings are calculated from both publicly available data and the Executive Opinion Survey, a comprehensive annual survey conducted by the World Economic Forum together with its network of Partner Institutes (leading research institutes and business organizations) in the countries covered by the report.
Statistics, Knowledge and Policy 2007: Measuring and Fostering the Progress of Societies
OECD
Is life getting better? Are our societies making progress? Indeed, what does “progress” mean to the world’s citizens? For a good portion of the 20th century there was an implicit assumption that economic growth was synonymous with progress: an assumption that a growing GDP meant life must be getting better. But researchers now recognize that it isn’t quite as simple as that. Access to accurate information is vital to judge politicians and hold them accountable. But access to a comprehensive and intelligible portrait of that most important of questions - whether or not life has got and is likely to get better - is lacking in many societies.
POLICY DIGEST [Table of Contents]
The Power of Place: A National Strategy for Building America's Communities of Innovation
Association of University Research Parks, AURP
This report c alls for the creation of American Innovation Zones, which will include universities, research parks, federal labs and technology incubators. These Zones will directly support the technology competitiveness of the United States. America's university research parks, technology incubators, federal labs and adjacent federal land (enhanced-use leases) are key national innovation assets. Many nations around the world are building substantial research parks. However, in the United States, this has been principally a state and local government role. It is vitally important for the federal government to leverage support for research parks and related innovation assets. American competitiveness requires the reform of the barriers that prevent the full optimization of our facilities.
A strategy to cluster research and incubator facilities (along with housing and amenities) in innovation zones is an important aspect of our future U.S. technological and ecological competitiveness. Policy recommendations stemming from these considerations include:
While these recommendations refer to specific American initiatives they do highlight the realm of policy areas in which provincial and federal governments might cooperate, or expand collaborative support, in the Canadian context. Additionally, it focuses on those initiatives that are both useful to a narrow sector of economic actors (university technology parks), but with broader potential impacts on communities of innovation and regional prosperity.
EVENTS [Table of Contents]
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, 16-18 October, 2008
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, Memorial University of Newfoundland is hosting an International Conference, with over 90 submissions received with themes ranging from:How to identify opportunities and challenges to knowledge sharing; How to work with the media in connecting research to the community; How to translate knowledge to influence policy and decision-making; How communities and non-governmental organizations can "reach in" to influence research and knowledge generation; How outreach centres can evaluate and maximize their impact; How institutions in other countries are doing it, from Iceland and Ireland, to the U.S. and the Philippines; How Canada's research funding councils are developing knowledge transfer and knowledge mobilization strategies.
Regional Comparative Advantage and Knowledge-Based Entrepreneurship
Amsterdam, Netherlands, 9-10 October, 2008
The organizers invite submissions for empirical and theoretical papers on the financing of knowledge-based entrepreneurial firms, on the influence of venture capital on firms’ ability to translate technological advances into successful products, and on the contribution of knowledge-based entrepreneurship to regional dynamics.
Seville, Spain, 16-17 October, 2008
Following the success of 2004 and 2006 events, the International Seville Conference on Future-Oriented Technology Analysis (FTA) has become a major occasion for FTA experts, practitioners and decision-makers to bring their ideas and knowledge together in a highly interactive environment. As with previous FTA events, the 2008 Conference places emphasis on diversity of views by attracting participants from a wide geographical base. Academics, practitioners as well as public and private sector decision makers from Europe, North America, Asia, Latin America, Africa and Australasia are invited to broaden the network and to increase understanding of advances in the field of FTA.
Powering Innovation: A National Summit 
Toronto, 3-4 November, 2008
An amazing roster of distinguished national and international keynotes and speakers are coming together for this exciting national conference. This is a rare opportunity to meet and network with researchers, CIOs, top educators, tech industry partners and government representatives from across Canada and beyond. Interact with exhibitors showcasing innovative technologies, from holographic 3D imaging, to IP-based television platforms, to the latest in super advanced networking. Join us for engaging sessions on e-science, the greening of IT, the march towards applications in the “cloud”, innovative visualization technologies, virtual organizations, teaching and learning in a web 2.0 universe, commercializing innovation and more.
Towards World Class Clusters in Europe
Sophia Antipolis, France, 13-14 November, 2008
For the fourth consecutive year, the annual competitive cluster forum will take place in Sophia Antipolis, France. Centred on the European policy of clusters, which was already the object for two years of detailed works, will result in December in a decision of common European policies, also following a private conference on November 14th in which expected are 27 Ministers of the European Union concerned by innovation. These events are placed under the aegis of the French Presidency of the European Union. With the presence of international cluster representatives, these two days will be the place of fertile exchanges illustrated by already existing international cooperations.
The 5th International Conference on Innovation and Management (ICIM2008)
Maastricht, Netherlands, 10-11 December, 2008
Organized by UNU-MERIT (The Netherlands) and supported by Wuhan University of Technology (China) and Yamaguchi University (Japan), This conference will bring together academics, practitioners and other professionals involved in the filed of innovation and management. The conference format includes plenary and parallel sessions with both academic and practitioner presentations and workshops. In addition, the conference will provide networking opportunities together with a taste of local culture.
Understanding and Shaping Regions: Spatial, Social and Economic Futures
Leuven, Belgium, 6-8 April, 2008
Many topics will be discussed such as regional policy and evaluation, regions as innovative hubs, economic restructuring and regional transformation, and local and regional economic development. Abstract submission deadline: Sunday, 4th January 2009.
Glasgow, Scotland, 17-19 June, 2008
Triple Helix VII offers a multi-disciplinary forum for experts from universities, industry and government. The Conference is designed to attract leading authorities from across the world who will share their knowledge and experience, drawing a link between research, policy, and practice in sustainable development. The Conference will bring together policy-makers, academics, researchers, postgraduate students, and key representatives from business and industry. The theme for Triple Helix VII - “The role of Triple Helix in the Global Agenda of Innovation, Competitiveness and Sustainability” - reflects the interaction between academia, the private and the public sector.
>SUBSCRIPTIONS & COMMENTS [Table of Contents]
Please forward this newsletter to anyone you think will find it
of value. We look forward to collaborating with you on this initiative.
If you would like to comment on, or contribute to, the content, subscribe
or unsubscribe, please contact us at onris.progris@utoronto.ca.
This newsletter is prepared by Jen
Nelles.
Project manager is David
A. Wolfe.
