Integrating Gender Dynamics into Innovation Ecosystems

Abstract

Innovation ecosystems can be constructed around any subject matter. We choose here the topic of gender, which we examine as a component of innovation success. Most analyses of innovation systems tend to assume gender-neutral position with regard to identity and roles of participating actors and their activities. However, real-life innovations can often result in different quality of outcomes for women and men; the innovation potential of highly trained women remains unrealised; and the recent socioeconomic empowerment of women as driver of market needs continues to be ignored. Drawing on latest research evidence from studies of gender issues in science, we show how innovation systems can benefit from adopting more gender sensitive approaches, which recognise the role gender plays in shaping knowledge and market activities. We propose four scenarios for constructing gender sensitive innovation ecosystems based on different gender dynamics that combine scientific understanding of sex and gender differences with improved engagement of women in innovation process, enabled through participatory methods and open and inclusive innovation practices.

Supporting Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Higher Education in Italy

“…From a research and innovation perspective, mixed teams are keener to innovate, more creative in problem-solving activities and more competitive with regard to publication performance, acquisition of competitive grants, etc. (see Powell, 2018;Campbell et al, 2013;Pollitzer and Schraudner, 2015). Gender equality and gender mainstreaming have become core dimensions in the European Research Area (ERA).…”

Sustainable Development Goals in the Andalusian olive oil cooperative sector: Heritage, innovation, gender perspective and sustainability.

“…The European Commission, which has pledged to promote gender equality in the field of innovation, establishes a wide-ranging commitment to equality in all EU policies; moreover, it has a well-established regulatory framework on gender equality, which includes binding directives broadly applied in the entire labour market as part of its gender equality strategy for 2020-2025 (European Union, 2020). This is an extension of the context established in Horizon 2020, in relation to which Pollitzer and Schraudner (2015) identified important roles that can be played by gender in innovation ecosystems, both in terms of knowledge activities and the improved capacity of human capital resources to generate market opportunities, ultimately influencing success. This gender perspective leads us to make the following proposition, related to SDG 5: Proposition 2: Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world, and both necessary and beneficial in olive oil cooperatives.…”

Exploring the nexus of gender and environment in the H2020 PHOENIX project: insights from the design of a gender equality plan

“…This method entailed the active engagement of all project partners and has underpinned the comprehensive PHOENIX gender mainstreaming framework, illustrated in Table 1, which served as a reference for further refinement and operationalization. The foundation of this framework is rooted in a twofold approach to gender-sensitive research (European Commission, 2011) that not only emphasizes the importance of incorporating the gender dimension into the content of research and innovation, but also highlights its significance in the processes and contexts within which research is conducted (Pollitzer and Schraudner, 2015;Trbovc and Hofman, 2015). In essence, the framework seeks to enhance gender equality not only in research outcomes, but also in the processes and environments that shape them (European Commission, 2012).…”