Exploring the future of innovation diplomacy

Abstract

Science diplomacy links the two policy domains of foreign affairs and science policy. Competitive thinking and the ways in which this affects global challenges are now putting the globalisation trends in science, technology and innovation under pressure. Rising populism adds to the growth of de-globalisation politics. In an increasingly knowledge driven world this leads to changes in the roles of diplomats. Their focus has already shifted from relatively neutral scientific collaborations to the technology and innovation interests of their home-countries. What are likely future developments of the field of science, technology and innovation diplomacy? The paper explores the future roles and development of innovation diplomacy as the outcome of interactions between the evolving characteristics of science, technology and innovation on the one hand and of international relations and foreign policies on the other. It is explorative, because there is no research tradition on which it can build and requires bringing together insights from several disciplines in new combinations. Trends in the fields of science, technology and innovation and in the field of international relations (including changes in the mechanisms and institutions for global governance) will be discussed. Together these drivers provide a framework through which potential futures of innovation diplomacy can be explored.

Innovation policy and international relations: directions for EU diplomacy

“…This paper is the result of extensive desk research, mostly literature analysis. Scientific literature on the issue is scarce: the concept of innovation diplomacy is still "under construction" [5,6]. Innovation diplomacy is being shaped in close connection with the rapidly changing international political environment of today.…”

“…Examples of today are the Google search engine, Google's Android, Amazon, Facebook, AirBnB, etc. 5 The mechanisms behind the formation of such virtual monopolies were already extensively analysed and described 20 years ago (see for instance [9]). But politics and the public debate are only gradually starting to become aware of the implications of the rise of such (almost global) monopolies or oligopolies [10].…”

“…is increasing. With innovation becoming more important for countries to gain a competitive edge, it is also becoming an increasingly important aspect of international relations (see also the short account in [5]). This may go well beyond the sphere of economic competition into the domain of politics.…”

“…The new products, processes and services offer solutions for pressing (global) problems and generally contribute to rising productivity and increased wealth for all. An earlier publication [5] briefly showed that (technological) innovation had become an important topic on the agendas of many international organizations and networks. These organizations and networks helped to foster innovation thinking and building the right institutions and policy instruments, mostly based on what can be found in leading countries in the field.…”

“…In an earlier publication [5], it was proposed to use the "functions of innovation systems" scheme of Hekkert et al [48,49] for an analysis of innovation policies as they appear in international relations and innovation diplomacy. 18 The functions are not necessarily directly related to innovation policy and its international dimensions, but they provide a very useful schematic to map potential policies.…”