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Research article2022Peer reviewedOpen access

The drivers of private and public eco-innovations in six large countries

Haggmark, Tobias; Elofsson, Katarina

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine and compare the contributions to environmental innovation of the public sector and private sector, respectively, and to compare their determinants. We analyze the development over time of triadic patents, classified as environmental technological innovations, for six major patenting countries from 1990 to 2014. This is done using a factor decomposition analysis framework. The analysis is done at both country aggregate level, and for a set of specific technological topics: alternative energy production, energy conservation, agriculture and forestry, and waste management. Results indicate that there has been a shift at an aggregate level towards environmentally sustainable technologies. In the private sector, the shift can be attributed to changes in research priorities and an increased scale of R&D. In the public sector, increased patenting of environmentally sound technologies can be attributed to efficiency gains. The largest difference between the public and private sector is observed in R&D efficiency, where in the private sector, reductions in efficiency have contributed negatively to patent growth, whereas the opposite is true for the public sector. In both sectors, research focus has shifted towards energy-related technologies.

Keywords

Environmental innovation; Logarithmic mean divisia index; Patents; Public sector; Private sector; Technological innovation

Published in

Journal of Cleaner Production
2022, Volume: 364, article number: 132628
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD

      SLU Authors

      • Elofsson, Katarina

      Sustainable Development Goals

      Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
      Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
      Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

      UKÄ Subject classification

      Environmental Management
      Social Sciences Interdisciplinary

      Publication identifier

      DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.132628

      Permanent link to this page (URI)

      https://res.slu.se/id/publ/118385