Innovation Policy Report
May 2014
Table of Contents
Australian Developments .............................................................................. 2
Australian Government Reviews of the SA and Victorian economies .......... 2
Positioning for prosperity? Catching the next wave ..................................... 3
Commercialisation Australia’s Value Proposition ......................................... 3
High Performance Workplaces .................................................................... 3
Design-led Innovation .................................................................................. 4
Developments in the Public Sector Innovation Network .............................. 4
Innovation and the productivity challenge in the public sector ..................... 5
Australian soil carbon map .......................................................................... 6
CSIRO NASA partnership: 50 years ............................................................ 6
A Digitally-enabled Health System............................................................... 7
Compressed air engine on the horizon for Australia .................................... 7
NSW: Industry-Research Collaboration Roundtable .................................... 8
NSW Creative Laureate and NSW Emerging Creative Talent Awards ........ 8
Innovate NSW eHealth Pitching Event ........................................................ 8
International Developments ........................................................................ 10
Africa ......................................................................................................... 10
Asia............................................................................................................ 10
Europe ....................................................................................................... 10
North America ............................................................................................ 14
Global ........................................................................................................ 16
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Australian Developments
Australian Government Reviews of the South
Australian and Victorian economies
Reviews of the South Australian and Victorian economies were announced on
18 December 2013 in response to Holden’s decision to close its
manufacturing operations by 2017.
The reviews are looking at ways to boost the competitiveness of the South
Australian and Victorian economies, including:

encouraging investment and innovation in high growth sectors in the
affected regions;

further investing in infrastructure to boost productive capacity;

supporting the diversification of automotive supply chain companies;
and

supporting the training and redeployment of workers displaced by
closures.
The scope of the reviews was broadened as a result of Toyota’s
announcement that it would cease manufacturing by 2017.
The reviews will help inform the design of a growth fund and a broader
Industry Investment and Competitiveness Agenda.
The growth fund will provide:

support for existing automotive component manufacturers in Victoria
and South Australia to adjust their business output or business model
to non-automotive and overseas customers, or who can commence or
expand export activity; and

grants to existing and new businesses that establish or expand
manufacturing operations in South Australia or Victoria, with preference
for those businesses that employ former automotive workers.
The Industry Investment and Competitiveness Agenda is being developed by
a taskforce chaired by the Prime Minister and also includes the Treasurer, the
Minister for Trade and Investment and the Minister for Industry. The taskforce
is due to report by mid-year.
The Agenda will focus on potential measures to promote national
competitiveness and productivity including:

economy-wide measures to boost the competitiveness of Australian
manufacturing and lower the costs of doing business, such as options
to reduce the costs of energy and regulation on businesses;
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
options to encourage innovation, including employee share schemes,
support for research and development and commercialising good
ideas;

options to accelerate the development of productivity enhancing
infrastructure;

options to encourage the growth of small to medium businesses; and

economy-wide incentive mechanisms to boost investment in Australia.
Positioning for prosperity? Catching the next wave
New research released in March 2014 has identified 25 sectoral hotspots with
the biggest potential to lift Australia’s growth over the next 20 years.
Positioning for Prosperity? Catching the next wave, the third in Deloitte’s
Building the Lucky Country series, analyses growth prospects across all major
parts of Australia’s economy and highlights Australia’s current and future
growth waves. The report recognises mining as the current wave, while
agribusiness, gas, tourism, international education and wealth management
represent the next wave and collectively have the potential to overtake mining
and keep Australia at the top of the world’s national prosperity charts. The
report includes an analysis of the intersections between global opportunity
and Australian advantage and identifies 19 further potential growth pockets
with major implications for Australia. The information is also available as a
downloadable infographic.
Commercialisation Australia’s Value Proposition
The fifth issue of Commercialisation Australia’s Value Proposition is now
available. The name of the magazine encapsulates Commercialisation
Australia's mission - to see more of Australia’s ingenious inventions and world
class R&D achieve commercial expression. The magazine is released
quarterly and includes informative, entertaining and inspiring material.
This issue has a domain focus on the Defence, Safety and Security sector
and features a number of case studies from Participants highlighting the
challenges facing start-ups seeking to gain traction in this marketplace.
High Performance Workplaces
In June 2013, the Australian Government Department of Industry
commissioned the Centre for Workplace Leadership to conduct research to
better understand:

The complex issues impacting small-to-medium sized manufacturing
enterprises’ capacity and capabilities to grow into high performing
firms; and
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
The industry and firm leadership necessary or desirable for such a
transition.
The underlying aim of the project is to produce more manufacturing
companies that are able to compete domestically and globally and so grow
and increase national wealth and employment.
The project is due for completion by January 2015.
Design-led Innovation
In June 2013 the Australian Government Department of Industry
commissioned the University of Technology Sydney to investigate actions that
encourage greater adoption of design-led innovation by Australian
Small-to-Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs). The underlying aim of the project
was to grow more Australian manufacturing SMEs into globally competitive
mid-sized firms.
The project will provide examples and case studies of design; detail practical
actions to promote the adoption of design-led innovation by Australian
manufacturing SMEs; and practical tools that assist manufacturing SMEs
diagnose and resolve problems in implementing design-led innovation.
The project is due for completion by June 2014.
Developments in the Public Sector Innovation
Network
The Public Sector Innovation Network (PSIN) recently published the contact
names of its co-ordination group, and its Terms of Reference.
The PSIN co-ordination group meets on a monthly basis to discuss
developments in public sector innovation (PSI), provide updates on their
department or agency innovation initiatives, and to plan innovation events
(particularly Innovation Month). The group consists of public servants with a
direct role or strong interest in innovation. Group members receive updates on
PSI planning, notes and invites to the Co-ordination group meetings, and
discuss issues on the group email list and GovDex.
Those who agree to the group’s Terms of Reference are listed as a contact
for their agency on the PSIN page. These members distribute information on
the PSI and collect information on innovation initiatives for the PSI’s annual
report to the Secretaries Board. The group is currently wholly
Canberra-based. If you are outside Canberra in a federal, state, or local
government role and you’re interested in public sector innovation, we are
looking to develop other PSIN chapters.
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Innovation Month
The PSIN is currently planning a program of events for Innovation Month and
the rest of the year. Innovation Month will run from 7 July to 1 August 2014
under the theme Empower, Collaborate, Transform. Numerous ideas are on
the drawing board, many of the below events are yet to be confirmed and the
PSIN is seeking contacts to help develop them.
Pattern Breaking: innovative transformation of the public sector
and beyond
A one day event focussing on how the public sector can, and is, becoming
more innovative.
Integrating Innovation into your Department
Based on the outcomes of the capability reviews innovation is an area
needing development for many agencies. This event would be a discussion
on how this can be done using the tools and resources of the PSIN.
So you have an ideas management systems – now what?
A panel discussion on the challenge of how to integrate an ideas
management system into your agency’s decision making processes and how
to select and pursue the best ideas that come forward.
Dangerous Ideas for the Public Service:
Borrowing shamelessly from The Festival of Dangerous Ideas, we’re looking
to develop a ‘Dangerous Ideas’ series of lunchtime discussions including:

Innovate or die – Can you be a good public servant if you’re not
innovating?

Innovation leadership or leadersunk – Are new models of leadership
needed for innovation in the public service?

Failure – is it the dirty word we can all learn from?
The PSIN currently consists of over 1200 members. You can join the network
by subscribing to the newsletter at the Innovation website. If you wish to
discuss any of the above items please contact us.
Innovation and the productivity challenge in the public
sector
The Executive Director of the HC Coombs Policy Forum, Dr Mark Matthews,
has suggested that the public service consider the concept of
intelligence-based policymaking as a means of crafting quicker policy
responses when information is partial or incomplete. Dr Matthews spoke
about this concept at an address to senior public servants at the inaugural
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Policy Reflections Forum at the Australian Government Department of
Communications in March 2014. Intelligence-based policymaking involves
tests of competing hypotheses and is used widely by the intelligence
community to inform decision-making when a shortage of time means that the
accumulation of robust evidence is a challenge. Dr Matthews notes that an
advantage of intelligence-based policymaking is that it is better positioned to
handle the possible unhelpful reactions of those groups a piece of policy is
aimed at.
Australian soil carbon map
In March 2014 CSIRO released a map providing the most detailed and
accurate representation of soil organic carbon stocks, to a depth of 30cm, at a
national scale. The 2010 soil organic carbon map for Australia, draws on soil
sampling data and innovative prediction methods. The map includes an
estimate of soil carbon stock and an estimate of the uncertainty for
approximately two billion football-field-sized blocks (90m by 90m) across
Australia.
Flinders and Gilbert Agricultural Resource
Assessment
A team of over 100 people, led by CSIRO, have recently completed
investigations into the climate, soils, water capture, storage options and
potential productivity of agricultural development in two north Queensland
catchments: Flinders and Gilbert. Findings from their research have now been
released by the Australian and Queensland Governments.
Commissioned by the Australian Government under the North Queensland
Irrigated Agriculture Strategy, the Flinders and Gilbert Agricultural Resource
Assessment looked at the opportunities and challenges associated with new
agricultural development in these catchments.
CSIRO NASA partnership: 50 years
On 19 March 2014, NASA's top officials were in Canberra to celebrate the
50th anniversary of their Deep Space Network (DSN). CSIRO’s Canberra
Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC) at Tidbinbilla plays a crucial
role in the DSN. Coincidentally, this year also marks the 50th year for the
CDSCC.
The DSN is made of up three tracking stations from around the world —
Tidbinbilla (Canberra), Goldstone (California) and Madrid (Spain). It controls
spacecraft travelling through the solar system and receives the data they send
back. Together, the three stations provide around-the-clock contact with more
than 40 spacecraft, including missions to study Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Pluto,
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the Moon and the Sun.
Wealth from Waste Cluster
The Wealth from Waste Cluster was launched on the 28 March 2014. The
Cluster is a three-year research program that builds on work undertaken by
the Mineral Futures Collaboration Cluster (2009-12). It focuses on ‘mining'
above ground resources, which are the metals contained in collections of
discarded manufactured products and consumer goods.
The research program is funded through CSIRO's Minerals Down Under and
Future Manufacturing flagships and partner universities, including:

The University of Technology, Sydney;

Monash University;

The University of Queensland;

Swinburne University of Technology; and

Yale University (USA).
A Digitally-enabled Health System
The report ‘A Digitally-enabled Health System’ looks at how the Australian
health system can reduce costs and deliver quality care.
Some of the technology identified in the report includes telepresence robots
taking rural health workers on city ward rounds, wireless ID wristbands
monitoring patients in real time, mobile health apps assisting with at-home
rehab and smart software that knows what patients will be turning up to
emergency departments, from six to 12 months in advance.
The Report found that Big Data analytics and decision support tools will be a
major driver in tomorrow’s digital hospital, helping staff move from reactive to
proactive planning to minimise wait times, improve bed availability, and
forecast likely discharge times – all of which make for a far less stressful
experience for patients and staff alike.
Compressed air engine on the horizon for Australia
IT MDI Energy Ltd and its production partner AirVolution, are planning to
release a compressed air engine for the Australian, New Zealand and Pacific
Island markets. The compressed air engine is designed to be a low cost,
environmentally friendly option to meeting transport and small scale power
generation needs.
IT MDI Energy Ltd hopes to releases its first product, the Airpod, into the
Australian market in the near future. The Airpod, is a compact, compressed
air powered vehicle that produces no pollution, can seat three, and is able to
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reach speeds of 80km per hour. The vehicle can be filled in approximately
two minutes at an air filling station and its top up power supply able to be
recharged in three and a half to four hours using an electric plug.
After being filled with compressed air, the engine uses solar technology to
heat and expand the air, providing sufficient pressure to power pistons in the
engine. When stationary, the vehicle can be used as a standby electricity
generator, air conditioner or means of collecting water from the condensation
of cool air.
At a time when Australia’s traditional automotive manufacturing sector
continues to decline, IT MDI Energy Ltd is proposing a decentralised
manufacturing model for the Compressed Air Engine. This decision will
enable the product to be manufactured locally in the region.
NSW: Industry-Research Collaboration Roundtable
The Sydney Business Chamber, with the support of the NSW Government,
conducted an industry-research collaboration roundtable on 5 February 2014
to strengthen the connection between business and research with a focus on
Western Sydney.
Australia’s Chief Scientist, Professor Ian Chubb, joined 60 representatives
from business, university and government for the high level event to discuss
strategies to improve commercial outcomes from R&D in Australia.
The outcomes of the roundtable will inform a PricewaterhouseCoopers
report, commissioned by the Chamber, on potential future initiatives to
improve industry-research collaboration.
NSW Creative Laureate and NSW Emerging Creative
Talent Awards
In response to a recommendation within the NSW Creative Industries Action
Plan, the NSW Government established the annual NSW Creative Laureate
and NSW Emerging Creative Talent Awards to recognise NSW creative
industries’ achievements that have contributed to increasing the global profile
of NSW Creative Industries.
The Award ceremony will be an annual event, during Vivid Sydney.
Nominations for the inaugural Awards opened 26 February and close on
6 April 2014. The awards will be determined by an independent, industry
drawn, Judging Panel. The inaugural event is on 28 May 2014.
Innovate NSW eHealth Pitching Event
An eHealth pitching and networking event was held by NSW Trade and
Investment on 27 March 2014 to facilitate introductions, exchange of ideas
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and the formation of consortia relating to potential health initiatives.
The event was part of the Innovate NSW Collaborative Solutions program
which provides project consortia with grants of up to 25 per cent of project
costs (to a maximum of $100 000) to develop innovative, new-to-market
business-to-business solutions. The purpose of the programme is to foster
collaboration between industry partners towards delivering a compelling,
new-to-market solution in one of the key sectors of e-health; advanced
manufacturing; energy technologies and services; online & interactive
education; or transport, logistics & infrastructure.
Around 150 people attended the event, which received good feedback about
new opportunities and linkages formed.
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International Developments
Africa
Egyptian Science, Technology and Innovation Observatory
The Egyptian Science, Technology and Innovation Observatory was launched
in February 2014. The Observatory aims to be a repository for Science,
Technology and Innovation data and a source of policy analysis in support of
evidence based policy making in Egypt, and undertakes evaluation,
monitoring and measurement of innovation activities.
Asia
UNCTAD to support Thailand in Science, Technology and
Innovation policy
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and
Thailand’s National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Office signed
a Memorandum of Understanding in March 2014. The agreement includes a
UNCTAD review of the overall effectiveness of the Thai national system of
innovation, as well as specific studies regarding human resources
development, agriculture and innovation in logistic services. UNCTAD staff
and international consultants will carry out the review in 2014 with the close
involvement of stakeholders from the Government of Thailand, academic
community, and the private sector.
Europe
Call for Knowledge and Innovation Communities proposals
The European Institute of Innovation and Technology announced the
2014 Call for Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KIC) proposals in
February 2014. Applicants are invited to submit their proposals with a view to
selecting and designating a KIC in each of the following thematic areas:

innovation for healthy living and active ageing; and

raw materials: sustainable exploration, extraction, processing, recycling
and substitution.
A KIC is a highly autonomous partnership of top-class higher education
institutions, research organisations, companies, and other stakeholders in the
innovation process, that tackles societal challenges through the development
of products, services and processes and also by nurturing innovative,
entrepreneurial people. A KIC connects excellence-driven innovation hubs,
the co-location centres, with a view to becoming leading centres of excellence
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and competing and collaborating with other innovation hubs across the world.
Applications close on 10 September 2014.
EU: Innovation Union Scoreboard 2014
The Innovation Union Scoreboard 2014 was released in March, and provides
a comparative assessment of the research and innovation performance of the
European Union (EU) Member States and the relative strengths and
weaknesses of their research and innovation systems.
The Scoreboard shows that the EU and its Member States have become
more innovative in recent years. However, the differences in the innovation
performance within the EU are still very high. The overall ranking within the
EU remains relatively stable, with Sweden at the top, followed by Denmark,
Germany and Finland. Portugal, Estonia and Latvia are the countries that
have most improved over the last years. The most progress has been made in
the openness and attractiveness of the EU research system as well as
business innovation collaboration and the commercialisation of knowledge as
measured by licence and patent revenues from abroad. However, the growth
of public R&D expenditures over the last years was offset by a continuous
decline in venture capital investments and non-R&D innovation investments in
companies.
EU: New tools to make museums more interactive
The European Commission has provided €2.8 million to fund the
Cultural-Heritage Experiences through Socio-personal interactions and
Storytelling project which aims to make the museum experience more
engaging.
A new innovation using mobile, augmented reality, and geo-localisation
technologies, turns an ordinary museum visit into a personal, interactive
storytelling experience. Created by a consortium of academic, industrial and
cultural organisations across Europe, the technology will enable tourists to
enhance their experience by participating in a personal, tailored itinerary and
interactive experience created by museum sites.
UK: Innovation Report 2014
In March 2014, the United Kingdom (UK) Department of Business, Innovation
and Skills released its Innovation Report 2014. The report contains evidence
on innovation activities, compares UK performance against other economies
and highlights innovation policy. The report notes that the UK continues to
perform strongly in a number of areas such as public and private R&D
investment and intangible asset investment. The report is part of a reflection
on what the UK’s innovation system should look like in the next decade and
represents the start of a process which will culminate in a fresh long-term
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strategy for science and innovation to be released later this year.
UK: Science strategy for world-leading research in
sustainable forest management and woodland creation
The United Kingdom (UK) Forestry Commission launched a six-year Science
and Innovation Strategy in March 2014. The strategy projects will provide the
evidence base for delivering long term, sustainable health and wellbeing
benefits of trees and woodlands to people; steer practical woodland
management and expansion; help to direct environmentally sustainable landuse change and direct a wide range of sustainable benefits from trees and
woodlands to support economic growth in the UK. The strategy was
developed with stakeholders from England, Scotland and Wales during
2012 and on a public consultation exercise in 2013.
UK: 20 innovative business models for sustainability
United Kingdom consultancy SustainAbility has released a report on
innovative business models. The report, Model Behaviour, explores business
model innovation in the context of sustainability and opens with the premise
that disruptive innovation is more about business models than products. It
suggests larger and more established companies tend not to be the source of
new business models but these companies can help evolve and mature them.
UK: Nesta examines what drives the dynamics of business
growth
A new working paper by Nesta seeks to explore what drives the dynamics of
business growth across ten OECD countries.
The paper, released in March 2014, shows how various policy settings, such
as labour market regulation, bankruptcy legislation, financial market systems,
and R&D support policies influence growth dynamics. The study analyses
changes in the whole distribution of firm employment growth, and so captures
the heterogeneity of firm growth dynamics within sectors.
Key findings reveal that financial development, higher banking competition
and better contract enforcement are associated with a more dynamic growth
distribution, with a lower share of stable firms and higher shares of growing
and shrinking firms. While stringent employment protection legislation, as well
as generous R&D fiscal incentives, are associated with a less dynamic firm
growth distribution, with more stable firms and fewer growing and shrinking
firms.
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UK: Nesta reports on the Craft of Supporting Early Stage
Social Ventures
Nesta’s report Good Incubation – the Craft of Supporting Early Stage Social
Ventures, charts the rise of social venture incubation, with a focus on key
learnings from various programmes around the world.
Social venture incubation is a relatively new area but one which is gaining
increasing recognition as an important way of solving the social and
environmental challenges of our age.
The term ‘Incubation’ refers to a collection of techniques that can be used to
prove an idea, develop a team and de–risk ventures for later–stage investors.
Whilst social impact investment has emerged as a means of financing these
sorts of incubation activities; the impact investment world has struggled to
develop a reliable ‘pipeline’ of early–stage potential investments to match the
growing amount of capital that is available for later–stage ventures. To fill this
gap social venture incubation has grown to help founders develop ventures
that are investable propositions.
The report, published in March 2014, finds that there are there are five models
of support that have emerged to support early stage ventures, including:
co-working spaces, social venture academies, impact angel networks, impact
accelerators, and social venture prizes and competitions.
The report also makes a series of recommendations on how social venture
incubation can be further developed through, for example:

gaining a better understanding of business models of incubation;

helping incubators to standardise their impact metrics; and

creating better ways to help founders chose the right model and
programme.
UK and Northern Ireland: Two new public sector innovation
labs
The Government of Northern Ireland has announced a new Innovation
Laboratory. Finance Minister Simon Hamilton noted the growth of innovation
labs globally. The first Innovation Laboratory project, which will be undertaken
in conjunction with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment, will
focus on the operation of Regulatory Impact Assessments, and will consider
how these can be made more effective in delivering a robust assessment of
the regulatory impact on businesses.
In addition, the UK Cabinet Office has launched Policy Lab UK which will
bring “new policy techniques to the UK Government, helping design services
around people’s experience, using data analytics and new digital tools”. Some
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background information on Policy Lab UK can be found on the UK Design
Council’s website.
North America
Canada First Research Fund
The Canadian government has announced a new fund, the Canada First
Research Excellence Fund aimed at strengthening science, technology and
innovation in Canada. The Fund aims to support Canadian institutions of
higher education to excel globally in research areas that create long-term
economic advantages for Canada.
The Fund joins programs such as the Canada Excellence Research Chairs
and the Canada Research Chairs in contributing to Canada’s performance in
research across all disciplines. The Fund will enable Canada's institutions to
seize emerging opportunities, generate talent and breakthrough discoveries
on the international stage.
Funding will be allocated on a competitive, peer-reviewed basis, though the
details are not yet fully described. The fund will be allocated $50 million in
2015/2016, with $200 million annually from 2018–19 and beyond.
Nanomanufacturing: Emergence and Implications for US
Competitiveness, the Environment, and Human Health
On 7 February 2014, the United States (US) Government Accountability
Office released Nanomanufacturing: Emergence and Implications for US
Competitiveness, the Environment, and Human Health. The report highlights
of a forum which was convened by the Comptroller General of the US in
July 2013, during which participants from industry, government, and academia
discussed the future of nanomanufacturing. The report addresses current US
investments in nanotechnology R&D, comparisons of R&D spending with
other key nations, assessments of future needs, and options for enhancing
US nanomanufacturing competitiveness.
US: Accelerating Medicines Partnership Launched
The United States National Institutes of Health, 10 biopharmaceutical
companies, and several non-profits have launched the Accelerating Medicines
Partnership. The aim of the partnership is jointly identifying and validating
promising biological targets of disease. The ultimate goal is to increase the
number of new diagnostics and therapies for patients and reduce the time and
cost of developing them.
The partnership will begin with three to five year pilot projects in three disease
areas: Alzheimer's disease; type 2 diabetes; and auto immune disorders of
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rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. All data and analyses that result from the
partnership will be available to the public. A critical component of the
partnership is that industry partners have agreed to make the AMP data and
analyses publicly accessible to the broad biomedical community. These pilot
projects will set the stage for broadening AMP to other diseases and
conditions.
US: NASA selects 108 SBIR phase II projects
NASA has selected 108 research and technology proposals from United
States small businesses that will enable the agency's future missions while
benefiting America's new high technology-driven economy. These proposals
will now enter into negotiations for contract awards as part of NASA's Small
Business Innovation Research Phase II program. The aerospace technology
and innovation projects have a total value of $87 million and support
99 businesses in 26 states.
US: Funding of $17m awarded to SBIR projects
US$17 million has been awarded to Small Business Innovation Research
(SBIR) projects to help small businesses in 13 states develop prototype
technologies to boost manufacturing energy efficiency, cut costs of clean
energy projects, and generate electricity from renewable energy. These
17 SBIR Phase I and II projects, supported by the United States Department
of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, include
technologies from wind turbine blades that are easier to transport and use
less energy to an electrochromic window technology able to achieve a
30 per cent reduction in energy use, and a solar energy system that cuts
installation costs and generates power in less time.
US: Plan to train public innovators
The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, a United States non-profit
organisation has announced a plan to train 5000 public innovators by 2016.
Public innovators are individuals with the mindset and skills to catalyse and
drive productive change in communities and change how communities work
together.
US: NIST funds five Manufacturing Tech Acceleration Centers
Funding of almost US$2.5 million has been awarded to five pilot projects by
the National Institute of Standards and Technology to improve the
competitiveness of United States small manufacturers and the rates at which
they adopt new technologies.
Working within specific supply chains to understand their technology needs
and trends, the new Manufacturing Technology Accelerator Center teams will
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identify where manufacturing most needs assistance in adopting or adapting
technologies. The pilot projects aim to bridge the gap between available
technologies and their commercial adoption by small firms. These efforts are
aligned with the United States administration’s plans to launch a national
network of innovation institutes to support growth of its manufacturing sector.
US Climate Data Initiative
In March 2014, the United States government launched the Climate Data
Initiative, a broad effort to leverage the Federal Government’s extensive,
freely-available climate-relevant data resources to stimulate innovation and
private-sector entrepreneurship in support of national climate-change
preparedness. Included in the proposed initiatives is the climate-focused
section of Data.gov, called climate.data.gov, which makes federal climate
data more open, accessible, and useful to citizens, researchers,
entrepreneurs, and innovators.
US: Industry-sponsored academic inventions spur increased
innovation
Analysis shows that industry-sponsored, academic research leads to
innovative patents and licenses. The report, funded by the United States
National Science Foundation's Directorate for Social, Behavioural and
Economic Sciences, calls into question assumptions that corporate support
skews science toward inventions that are less accessible and less useful to
others than those funded by the government or non-profit organisations. The
report analysed 12 516 inventions and related licenses at nine University of
California campuses and three associated national laboratories. The
inventions were disclosed between 1990 and 2005, and licensing activity was
analysed through 2010. Of the inventions, nearly 1500 were supported at
least partly by private industry.
Global
Advance Global Australian Awards
The 2014 Advance Global Australian Award winners were announced on
13 March 2014 at a forum and ceremony at the Sydney Opera House.
Winners of the 2012 and 2013 Awards are described on the Advance website.
Advance is the leading global network of Australians and alumni abroad, with
a growing membership of over 20 000 in 80 countries. The not-for-profit
organisation is headquartered in the US and has industry networks in the US,
Asia, UK, Europe and Australia. Advance is supported by the Australian
Government, State Governments and global corporate partners and donors.
Part-funded through a $3 million grant awarded to Advance in 2010-11 to
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support the measure “Advance: Leveraging Australia’s Global Expat
Platform”, the Advance Global Australian Awards are designed to recognise
and engage high achievers in Australia’s diaspora and global alumni of
Australian universities. The selection panel for the awards consists of eight
eminent Australians who represent the country's diverse entrepreneurial
culture.
Awards are provided in eight industry sectors including: Biotechnology, Clean
Technology, Mining and Resources, Advanced Manufacturing, Information
and Communication Technologies, Financial Services, Social Innovation and
Creative Industries.
Front End of Innovation Conference
The 12th annual Front End of Innovation Conference will be held in Boston
(United States) from 13-15 May 2014. Further information and the event’s
agenda can be found online.
OECD Symposium on Innovation and Inclusive Growth
The Growth Dialogue and OCED held a Symposium on Innovation and
Inclusive Growth on 20-21 March 2014, which brought together leading
experts and policy makers from advanced, emerging and developing
economies to discuss the critical challenges that need to be addressed for
innovation to support inclusive growth and identify key policy principles.
Key Questions the symposium focused on were:

what are the impacts of innovation and innovation policy on industrial,
social and territorial inclusiveness;

how can inclusive innovation initiatives be expanded to improve welfare
and facilitate the democratisation of innovation;

what are key implications for policy; and

what can be done to support the successful implementation of novel
approaches to policy to effectively support inclusive growth.
The OECD is currently engaged in project which seeks to provide evidence on
the impacts of innovation and related policies on inclusive growth and develop
concrete policy solutions to support countries in reconciling innovation and
inclusive development agendas. Initial findings were presented as part of the
symposium. The findings will be presented in the form of a publication at a
high-level conference in January 2015.
OECD Intelligent Demand: Policy Rationale, Design and
Potential Benefits
The OECD report Intelligent Demand: Policy Rationale, Design and Potential
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Benefits was released on 14 February 2014. The report reviews demand-side
innovation policies, their rationales (which vary across each of the different
demand-side instruments), the importance they are accorded across
countries, different approaches to their design, the challenges entailed in their
implementation and evaluation, and identified good practices. Three main
forms of demand-side policy are considered: innovation-oriented public
procurement, innovation-oriented regulations, and standards.
The report found that to be successful, innovation-oriented procurement
requires significant capacity development in the public sector, including a
break with traditional and risk-averse procurement practices. Capacity
constraints and problems of limited scale economies can occur when
initiatives are offered at a state rather than federal level, and so interaction
may also be needed across different parts of government. The design of
procurement procedures must also ensure that competition is preserved and
that SME participation is facilitated.
The report notes that procurement of innovation entails risks beyond those
incurred in traditional procurement, including technological risk, risks related
to the uptake by users of the good or service, and market risks - regarding
both supply and demand. Public bodies can mitigate marked risk by
implementing additional demand-side measures, such as user training
schemes, or using demand aggregation, in particular by bundling public
demand.
OECD Forum 2014
The OCED Forum 2014 will focus on Resilient Economies for Inclusive
Societies, and will be held on 5-6 May 2014. The Forum will focus on three
cutting themes: Inclusive Growth, Quality Jobs and Trust; and will contribute
to the debate on new policy alternatives for the most pressing challenges
facing our economies and societies. Motivation for the forum includes that
although OECD-wide unemployment should decrease slightly this year,
48 million people remain unemployed in OECD countries and 202 million
globally. Young people and the low-skilled have been hit the hardest, and
youth unemployment remains at dramatically high levels in many countries.
The Forum will build on discussions of the 2013 Forum, will offer an
opportunity to reflect further on what governments, international organisations
and the various OECD stakeholders must do to help develop more resilient
economies and societies.
OECD: Promoting Research Excellence Report
On 27 February 2014, the OECD released the Promoting Research
Excellence report, which presents new evidence on how Research Excellence
Initiatives (for example the Australian Research Council Centres of Excellence
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initiative), work and the characteristics of the supported Centres of Excellence
can help to inform discussions on future government policy directions. The
report shows that some of the benefits to be gained through Research
Excellence Initiatives, including increased researcher mobility (both within
national boundaries and abroad), is essential for scientific discovery and
increasing productivity. Research Excellence Initiatives make it easier for
Centres of Excellence to attract top scientists and foreign talent, and the
intake of foreign researchers also ultimately helps to form the long-run
linkages that foster innovation and knowledge creation at international level.
OECD: Green Growth Knowledge Sharing Platform
The Green Growth Knowledge Platform (GGKP) has launched a knowledgesharing platform that aims to respond to increasing demand from policy
makers and the public for more information on ways to achieve sustainable
economic growth. Like the GGKP itself, the website spans the traditional
divide between economy and the environment. It mobilises knowledge,
experience and support from disparate partners in both the global economic
and environmental arenas, all of which share the common goal of accelerating
green growth. Key features of the new platform include: a searchable e-library
with over 600 technical and policy resources, as well as dashboards with data
and policies for 193 countries. The GGKP was established in 2012 and
expanded since into a global partnership of international organizations and
experts which jointly aim at identifying and addressing major knowledge gaps
in green growth theory and practice.
Promoting Research Excellence: New Approaches to Funding
The OECD’s release Promoting Research Excellence: New Approaches to
Funding presents new evidence on how governments steer and fund public
research in higher education and public research institutions through
Research Excellence Initiatives (REIs). REIs are designed to encourage
research by providing large-scale, long-term funding to designated research
units. They provide funds for research and related measures, such as the
improvement or extension of physical infrastructure, the recruitment of
outstanding researchers from abroad, and researcher training. The report
highlights benefits to be gained through REIs and notes pitfalls to be avoided.
UN to launch innovation training for governments
The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will launch a
project to help build policymakers’ capacity to implement science and
innovation fostering plans in developing countries. The initiative was prompted
by the recognition that many developing countries were struggling to
implement the recommendations UNCTAD issues as part of its reviews of
nations’ science, technology and innovation policies. UNCTAD aims to
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develop training materials for policymakers that explain best practice in
designing and executing innovation plans and create a network of experts and
institutions that can help develop training tools on an ongoing basis.
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