Policy Perspectives on Innovation and Sustainable Development

The book identifies the need for evidence-based policy making, but works more on addressing conceptualisation and operationalisation aspects alone to a greater extent and to a lesser extent normatively. To say that a one size fits all approach is criticised, conflicts with the ability to generate concrete understanding in some parts. The Book, however succeeds in crafting the contours of the Decentralised Model of Science and Innovation to the aim of establishing sustainability of development.

The Book works well, in part by identifying the concepts of sustainable development but risks conflation of development of sustainability with sustainability of development at places. This though gives some of the themes discussed policy value at some level, yet doesn’t go far to address the linkage outlined i.e. the linkages of sustainable development and Innovation. Suffice to say, the Book appears to be caught in the themes that defy complementarity, in terms of the linkage under exploration. This may for the target reader they have outlined, lead to unintentional blurring of theoretical boundaries, as well as skewed internalisation of the syntax involved. Also, the book emphasises that measurement does not follow a straightjacket formulaic approach in such cases and that it is the conceptualisation that becomes more relevant and meaningful in cases, particularly in studying dynamic aspects of innovation systems. These two aspects work in ways, both positive and negative for the reader.