Transcript Innovative South - Federal University of Rio de Janeiro

For an Innovation South
Helena M M Lastres
Office for local production and innovation systems and regional
development
International Seminar on Innovation and Development under Globalization:
BRICS Experience
Trivandrum, 19-21 August 2009
Main Challenge for an Innovative South
Cognitive Injustice
• Knowledge relates directly to the cognition capacity
• Predominance of knowledge originated in the most
advanced countries of the North - contexts very different
from ours
– ‘The predominant scientific logic denies all forms of
knowledge that are not oriented by its epistemology and
methodological rules’ while also contributing to prevent
the creation of knowledge based in the reality of LDCs
(Souza Santos, 1987 and 2003) – quotations?
– Ignorance, exotization and discard of indigenous
knowledge and practices
Main Challenge for an Innovative South
Cognitive Injustice
• Consequences of the use of de-contextualized concepts,
models and indicators and their policy implications
– Decoupling between the needs of local environments
and the priorities given to social, scientific,
technological, innovation, economic, financial, political
and environmental development
Alerts to the use of concepts embodying ex-ante political
choices which by definition exclude social and economic
segments as well as regions from the policy agenda
‘Invisible exclusion’
Main Challenge for an Innovative South
Cognitive Injustice
E.g. The mapping of innovation and local innovation and
production systems (LIPSs) has only revealed the
existence of cases in the most advanced parts of Brazil.
The less structured cases and with high levels of
informality - that may also require both research
attention and policy support - were left aside
Their ‘invisibility’ has prevented their inclusion in the police
agenda
Concepts and parameters used in this mapping embodied
an ex-ante economicist choice and their support has
contributed to reinforce inequalities
Picking the winners policies X non recognition problems
Opportunities for an Innovative South
• New regulatory, production, innovation, financing and
accumulation regime capable of responding to the social
and environmental requirements of the III millennium
• New development mode
• Changes in the geopolitical scenario
• Increasing participation of less developed countries
(LDCs) in the world economy
– Greater interest in development and in solving
imbalance problems
• LDCs with large domestic markets have been less
affected by the international crisis
Main Opportunities for an Innovative South
• BRICSs:
– Domestic markets with huge potential
– Participation in international trade
– Expressive reserves and greater liquidity
• A situation never seen before: BRICSs and other
LDCs may contribute to alleviating the crisis and also
to pointing out new development alternatives
• The concept of development has changed and now it
stresses out variety and liberty, as opposed to the
pursuit for homogenization
Table 1: Variation in the gross domestic product (GDP) in
selected countries
GDP (real annual var.%)
World
Developed countries
USA
Euro Zone
Japan
"Emerging and developing" countries
**2009 e 2010: forecast
Source: International Monetary Fund
2008
2009
2010
3.2
0.8
1.1
0.9
-0.7
6.1
-1.3
-3.8
-2.8
-3.2
-6.2
1.6
1.9
0.0
0.0
-0.4
0.5
4.0
Figure 1: Contribution of countries in the world GDP
according to their development level
63.1
36.9
1998
63.1
36.9
1999
62.7
37.3
2000
62.1
37.9
2001
61.4
38.6
2002
60.5
39.5
2003
59.5
40.5
2004
Emerging and developing countries
* Forecast
Source: International Monetary Fund
58.5
57.5
42.5
41.5
2005
2006
56.3
43.7
2007
55.0
45.0
2008*
Developed countries
Main Lessons for an Innovative South
Cognitive Injustice
•
•
•
•
Recognition that ‘the best practice may be the absence of
a best practice’ (Rao, 2006)
The aim of dialoging with the North should no monopolize
and restrict Southern efforts to create and develop proper
concepts, methodologies and indicators
Importance of recognizing and adding to - instead of
ignoring and replacing - the tacit knowledge
accumulated by local actors about their environments
Relevance of mobilizing the participation and
protagonism of local actors in the design and
implementation of the policies
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Main Steps towards an Innovative South
Need to develop
• news forms of knowledge anchored in the reality of
BRICSs and other Southern countries
– emphasis on the complexity of their production,
innovation and ecosystems, biodiversity and social
communities - including those pluriethnical and
multicultural - and their own forms of interaction with
nature and culture. Tropical regions
• analytical and normative frameworks capable of
– taking into account BRICSs’ contexts, geopolitics and
power conflicts, as well as their intrinsic opportunities
– capturing the full specificities of BRICSs’ and other
Southern production and innovation systems
10
Main Steps towards an Innovative South
Need to promote
• development associating political, economic,
environmental and social dimension
• policies that help to diminish social and regional
inequalities
• sustainable and dynamic competitiveness, investing
in education, up-grading of local capabilities and
social capital
• importance of promoting coherence and co-ordination
instead of allowing for fragmentation and perverse
dispute between Southern regions and countries
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Main Steps towards an Innovative South
Need to develop new and adequate knowledge intensive
development policies capable of devising and exploring
our best opportunities with a long term perspective
E.g. Prospects for a ‘green’ or a ‘life science paradigm’ and
a ‘bio-civilization’ emphasize advantages of regions
possessing natural resources, biodiversity, appropriate
knowledge and multicultural societies
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Conclusion
Forging an Innovative South would depend on our
capacity of
• overcoming cognitive injustice and invisible exclusion
• developing our own analytical and normative concepts,
indicators and models
• straightening and deepening South-South cooperation
links
• devising and making use of opportunities in a inclusive,
cohesive and sustained development manner
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Thank you very much
Helena Maria Martins Lastres
[email protected]