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Blue Sky book published
Posted: 2007-10-02
The OECD has just published Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators in a Changing World: Responding to Policy Needs, a synthesis of discussions and more than 50 papers – including by a number of UNU-MERIT researchers - presented at the 2006 Blue Sky Forum in Ottawa, Canada. Anthony Arundel, coordinator of UNU-MERIT's research theme on Knowledge and Industrial dynamics co-edited the volume (with Alessandra Colecchia and Fred Gault). UNU-MERIT director Luc Soete has contributed a chapter (with Christopher Freeman) entitled "Developing Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators: The Twenty-First Century Challenges."
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Calling alumni
Posted: 2007-10-01
This month we launch a new feature on the alumni page: profiles of former UNU-MERIT students, PhD interns, and research staff. We caught up with Rajeswari Raina, a participant in the UNU-INTECH internship programme in 1995 who is currently based at the Centre for Policy Research in India.
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EC invites views on services innovation
Posted: 2007-10-05
As part of its PRO INNO initiative, the European Commission has launched a consultation on how to encourage innovation in the services sector. The input will feed into a report to be published early next year. The online questionnaire is available until the end of December 2007. |
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| Research & policy analysis |
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FOCUS ON RESEARCH THEME II
Posted: 2007-10-01
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Revamped macro-level research programme unveiled
Posted: 2007-11-03
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| Prof. Adam Szirmai |
UNU-MERIT has outlined its expanded research programme to advance understanding about the interlinkages between technological change, productivity, economic growth and socio-economic development. While further elaboration of the programme is still ongoing it already shows signs of realizing considerable synergies through more intensive collaboration of the nearly 15 UNU-MERIT researchers working in this area. Prof. Adam (Eddy) Szirmai, an expert on international comparisons of real output, technology and productivity at macro, regional and sectoral levels joined the group recently as research coordinator.
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New insights on growth and regional inequality in China
Posted: 2007-11-03
"We expected to find regional divergence. Instead we found regional convergence." This is how Prof. Szirmai describes the findings of a recent study of "Regional Productivity Trends in Chinese Industry." In a joint paper presented at the IARIW-NBS International Conference on “Experiences and Challenges in Measuring National Income and Wealth in Transition Economies,” held from 18-21 September in Beijing, Wang and Szirmai argue that whatever indicator one uses - whether GDP per capita, labour productivity or comparative efficiency scores - one can only conclude that, contrary to public perceptions, the degree of regional inequality is substantially lower than at the beginning of the reform period in 1978. |
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LINK rural innovation programme launches news bulletin
Posted: 2007-10-09
UNU-MERIT’s regional network of rural innovation policy
studies has launched a monthly news bulletin to highlight activities at its hubs in Africa and Asia and related international developments. The newsletter is produced at LINK’s South Asia office in Hyderabad, India, and is distributed free of
charge. If you would like to receive a copy by email please contact the editor at info@innovationstudies.org, or visit the LINK website.
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| Training & capacity development |
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Certificate of achievement for PhD students
Posted: 2007-10-22 |
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| Seven participants in the Innovation Studies and Development PhD programme have successfully completed their first year of studies. On Friday 29th September the students received certificate of achievement from Programme Coordinator, Prof. Anthony Bartzokas (pictured right), as they prepare to embark on their PhD projects. |
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Two PhD defences in October
Posted: 2007-10-11
On October 17, two PhD defences will take place. Tobias Kronenberg will defend his thesis "Reconciling Environmental Conservation with Economic Prosperity: The feasibility of Double Dividends in the Short and Long Run". Viktoriya Kravtsova will defend her thesis on "Assessing the Impact of Foreign Direct Investment in Transition Ecnomies". |
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A Case for Open Access to Educational Resources
Posted: 2007-10-01
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| Jan Philipp Schmidt |
In a recent article, Jan Philipp Schmidt, a third year PhD researcher at UNU-MERIT argues that the spread of open models of peer production necessitate a rethink of the role of the university in society, particularly in its most recent reincarnation as a commercial enterprise. The article explains how the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement is spearheading a broader trend towards open access to knowledge that is based on a participative and socially responsible understanding of education. The article is published by the Global University Network of Innovation (GUNI) – an initiative of UNESCO, UNU and the Technical University of Catalonia.
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Upcoming DEIP Training Programme in Pakistan
Posted: 2007-10-01
The next external training workship in the Design and Evaluation of Innovation Policy (DEIP) series takes place in Pakistan in March 2008 and is co-organized by UNU-MERIT and the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. Applications to participate in the programme are now being received. |
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| Face of the month |
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Qinqin Dong
Posted: 2007-10-02
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| Qinqin Dong |
Qinqin Dong is a Second Year PhD Candidate at the Management School, Wuhan University of Technology in Hubei Province, China. Her dissertation topic is technological learning in R&D alliances. Qinqin will spend three months at UNU-MERIT (September-November 2007) to undertake a study on Chinese-Western alliances together with Prof. Geert Duysters and UNU-MERIT PhD researcher Tina Saebi.
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| Events & networking |
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UNU-MERIT at Lisbon High-Level Conference
Posted: 2007-10-01
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| Municipal flag Lisbon |
UNU-MERIT Director Luc Soete and senior researcher Claire Nauwelaers are participating at the high-level Conference on "The Future of Science and Technology in Europe" to be held from the 8th to the 10th of October at the Gulbenkian Foundation Conference Centre in Lisbon. Hosted and organised by the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union, with the support of the European Commission, the conference aims to provide a forum for debate on future research policy developments in the EU, including the ongoing public discussion on the EC Green Paper, "The European Research Area: New Perspectives".
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WIPO takes another step in reform process
Posted: 2007-10-03
Karsten Gerloff and Rishab Aiyer Ghosh participated at the TACD conference, "The Reform of WIPO: Implementing the Development Agenda," on 17 September in Geneva. The meeting followed a successful three year campaign to reorient the technical assistance programme of WIPO (the World Intellectual Property Organization) to serve the interests of developing countries. In his presentation Rishab Aiyer Ghosh showed how Free/Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS) has successfully built an ecosystem that relies on sharing knowledge, not on monopolizing ideas. Supported by extensive quantitative and qualitative evidence he argued that WIPO will need to take alternative models of knowledge management into account if it does not want to become obsolete. |
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2nd EPIP Conference held
Posted: 2007-10-02
The European Policy on Intellectual Property (EPIP) Association held its second Annual Conference on 20-21 September at Lund University, Sweden. The meeting was hosted by the Centre for Innovation, Research and Competence in the Learning Economy, CIRCLE. Keynote presentations can now be downloaded from the conference page. |
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| New publications |
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FEATURED PUBLICATIONS THIS MONTH
Posted: 2007-10-01
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The national accounts of the People's Republic of China
Posted: 2007-10-01
The National Accounts of the People’s Republic of China: Measurement Issues, Recent Developments and the Way Forward. Edited by Bishnu Dev Pant, Manila: Asian Development Bank, 2007. Adam Szirmai has contributed a chapter (with Ruoen Ren) entitled "Measuring Labor Productivity in Chinese Manufacturing: Statistical Problems and Solutions."
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Finance and Inequality: Channels and Evidence
Posted: 2007-10-01
"Finance and Inequality: Channels and Evidence," by Stijn Claessens (CEPR/IMF) and Enrico Perotti (CEPR/UNU-MERIT). Forthcoming in the Journal of Comparative Economics, this paper provides a conceptual review of recent literature on financial access, and their links with inequality. |
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