The European Observatory for Clusters and Industrial Change has published the 2020 edition of the European Panorama of Clusters and Industrial Change, written by UNU-MERIT researchers Hugo Hollanders and Iris Merkelbach. The report presents an overview of how clusters contribute to the competitiveness of the European economy. It analyses cluster strength across 51 exporting industry sectors in Europe and identifies 2,950 regional industrial clusters. These industrial clusters account for almost ...
The exponential growth of data and artificial intelligence is creating a tug-of-war between data for profit and data for the common good. In this struggle, it is fundamental that we protect our basic human data rights. Artificial intelligence will someday know you better than you know yourself. That day may be sooner than we realise with the amount of data collected on all humans and their environments increasing exponentially. So where are the rules, and what are our rights?...
The invention of an artificial super-intelligence has been a central theme in science fiction since at least the 19th century. From E.M. Forster’s short story The Machine Stops (1909) to the recent HBO television series Westworld, writers have tended to portray this possibility as an unmitigated disaster. But this issue is no longer one of fiction. Prominent contemporary scientists and engineers are now also worried that super-AI could one day surpass human intelligence (an event known as the “s...
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are emerging technologies that many people are afraid of, including so-called ‘experts’ and policymakers. Perceived threats include the loss of millions of jobs, leading to mass unemployment and spiralling social and economic problems. One popular study by Frey and Osborne concludes that “47% of total US employment is in the high-risk category [above 70% risk], meaning that associated occupations are potentially automatable over some unspecified numbe...
The Great Recession of the late 2000s hit Europe hard, with the perfect storm of an economic downturn and a productivity slowdown. What’s more, it compounded years of already anaemic growth. Since then, EU states and agencies have worked hard to contain these problems, but a decade later there are still no comprehensive solutions. A new EU-funded project involving Prof. Pierre Mohnen and Assistant Prof. Tania Treibich aims to change all that. GROWINPRO will provide a raft of joined-up policies t...
Policies that cut school expenditures under the premise of “doing more with less” can also contribute to a decrease in high school graduation rates that could easily cancel out those savings. Shutterstock A joint post by Profs. Louis Volante, Jo Ritzen et al. Recently, the Ontario government proposed educational reforms that collectively amount to savings of almost $1 billion, according to an analysis by the charity People for Education. As a result of reforms, students will receive less attenti...
My research was about a set of public policies to support the semiconductor industry in Brazil. These policies started to be designed in the early 2000s, when it was identified that developing a semiconductor industry in the country would foster innovation in the electronics industry. The latter was already present in the country, but it focused on assembling goods and relied on imported components to do so. Thus, several complementary policies were put in place over the years, including a state...
A joint post by Prof. Shyama V. Ramani and Maria Tomai The many varied possibilities of the ‘Circular Economy’ are starting to enter the public consciousness. But what is it exactly? “Looking beyond the current ‘take, make and dispose’ extractive industrial model, the circular economy is restorative and regenerative by design. Relying on system-wide innovation, it aims to redefine products and services to design waste out, while minimising negative impacts. Underpinned by a transition to renewab...
Since the beginning of this month, European, Canadian and Mexican steel and aluminium are now also subject to import tariffs in the US of 25% and 10% respectively due to so-called “national security” concerns. It is not as yet a trade war but if the unilateral measures of the United States are not lifted in the coming weeks, a series of countermeasures from the EU, Canada and Mexico are likely to be introduced. And after the G7 fiasco in Canada, it has become rather clear: a trade war is in the ...
A survey co-led by researchers at UNU-MERIT has found that women’s economic empowerment in Tunisia remains low, in spite of a nationwide strengthening of legal protections. There was progress, however, on women’s leadership and time use thanks to improvements in education and training. The results of the survey, presented 11 May 2018 at a workshop in Tunis co-hosted by the Center of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR), showed that 95% of women living in households with a ma...