On the mechanism and effects of innovation: Search for safety and independence of resource constraints expands the safe operating range

• Published in: Ecological economics 2015-08, Vol.116, p.387-400
• Main Author: Bringezu, Stefan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Boundaries; Competition; Consumption; Decoupling; Eco-innovation; Institutions; Productivity; Quality of life; Resource efficiency; Resource utilization; Security; Sustainable resource management; Technology assessment; Value added
• ISSN: 0921-8009; 1873-6106
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2015.06.001

The paper reflects the hypothesis that those technological and institutional innovations survive which extend the safe operating range (SOR) of the Humans-Technologies-Institutions (HTI) system (e.g. companies, cities, regions and countries). The multidimensional SOR of a country comprises in particular safe livelihood, quality of life, security, monetary stability, supply security and quality of the environment. A “mechanism of progress” is described involving the search for higher safety and independence of constraints. With innovation and learning in a key role, the mechanism leads to a relative decoupling of resource use and economic value added and a growing share of knowledge generation in the economy. Competition of HTI systems for scarce resources may lead to independence strategies such as enhanced resource efficiency. It may also lead to cooperation of competing HTI systems facilitated by new institutions thus forming an HTI system at higher level of complexity. While the consortium could coordinate their resource consumption within the boundaries of safe operating space, the partner HTI systems would further expand their SOR. Data is provided that net resource importing countries have developed higher material productivity thus increasing their independence from resource supply, and countries with such capability have gained higher innovation capacity.