Innovation can succeed despite globalization
The challenges posed by the phenomenon of globalization mean that greater policy coordination is needed, not only at the sectoral level but also at the transnational level, according to a report published by the European Commission, Directorate-General XII. "The globalising learning economy: Implications for innovation policy" is based on contributions from seven projects under the Targeted Socio-Economic Research (TSER) programme. The authors concluded that the more need- and problem-oriented approach of the Fifth Framework Programme (FP5) for Research, Technological development and Demonstration (RTD) is much in line with their analysis, as is FP5's emphasis on environmental problems. However, they also point out that FP5 has all the signs of being designed by experts in natural science and technology. "There are few references to social problems, such as polarization, and the science-technology response is almost exclusively defined in terms of natural science and technology," they say. "Apparently, it has not been recognized that economic performance as well as the success in tackling environmental problems will reflect organizational capabilities and human resource development. "Bringing results from TSER projects into the European policy discourse may help to correct this bias and give a better understanding of the potential contributions from the social sciences and the humanities," they conclude.