Science and innovation have the power to transform our lives and the world we live in - for better or worse – in ways that often transcend borders and generations: from the innovation of complex financial products that played such an important role in the recent financial crisis to current proposals to intentionally engineer our Earth’s climate. The promise of science and innovation brings with it ethical dilemmas and impacts which are often uncertain and unpredictable: it is often only once these have emerged that we feel able to control them. How do we undertake science and innovation responsibly under such conditions, towards not only socially acceptable, but socially desirable goals and in a way that is democratic, equitable and sustainable? Responsible innovation challenges us all to think about our responsibilities for the future, as scientists, innovators and citizens, and to act upon these. This book begins with a description of the current landscape of innovation and in subsequent chapters offers perspectives on the emerging concept of responsible innovation and its historical foundations, including key elements of a responsible innovation approach and examples of practical implementation. Written in a constructive and accessible way, Responsible Innovation includes chapters on: Innovation and its management in the 21st century A vision and framework for responsible innovation Concepts of future-oriented responsibility as an underpinning philosophy Values – sensitive design Key themes of anticipation, reflection, deliberation and responsiveness Multi – level governance and regulation Perspectives on responsible innovation in finance, ICT, geoengineering and nanotechnology Essentially multidisciplinary in nature, this landmark text combines research from the fields of science and technology studies, philosophy, innovation governance, business studies and beyond to address the question, “How do we ensure the responsible emergence of science and innovation in society?”

Over the past 25 years, the regional innovation system (RIS) approach has become a powerful framework for explaining the uneven geographical distribution of innovation in space as well as for developing policies geared towards boosting the innovation capability of regional economies. This Advanced Introduction provides a critical review and discussion of research on RIS to answer a set of core questions covering the origins of the concept and its theoretical underpinnings to the challenges for future scholarly work on RIS.

This book is a reaction to popular assumptions that innovation is always a force for good. While the popular press and politicians often take the view that "the more innovation, the better", the chapters in this edited volume reflect on the harmful effects of innovation on society and the environment. The book begins with a broad discussion of the dark side of innovation, followed by contributions by various experts in the area. It is a critical reply to the innovation optimists, complementing the list of indicators that show steady human progress with a list of indicators that show sustained deterioration (largely due to innovation). The volume outlines some relevant dimensions of harmful innovation, before distinguishing between the types of harm brought on by innovation. The various contributed chapters focus on the following themes: a bibliometric analysis of the scientific literature on the harmful consequences of innovation; harmful side-effects from solar photovoltaic waste; harmful consequences of process innovations on working practices in areas such as accountancy; the difficulties of transferring innovations from research to practice in clinical healthcare; and the harmful consequences of social innovations. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the journal Industry and Innovation.

Social innovation (SI) has, in the last decade or so, become an important idea and concept in policy, practice and scholarship surrounding human development. It is often seen as an antidote to narrowly defined technological and market-oriented modes of innovation. Its historical significance and development, tied to centuries of struggles for social change, remain under-appreciated and unacknowledged. This Advanced Introduction explores the historical and contemporary meanings of social innovation and its relationship with political and social movements. It develops an understanding of SI as a form of ethical practice for meeting needs, transforming social relations, and collectively empowering communities to shape the future. Additionally, it proposes that ethical research should aim to be socially innovative in this sense and provides concrete suggestions of how this concern can be embodied in action-research and community development methodologies.