Instructional goals
The course offers the fundamentals of the economics of innovation and its relationships with the environmental sustainability. It covers topics related to: the drivers of innovation and its impact on the economic and environmental performance of firms, regions, and countries; firm dynamics and strategies in relation to innovation, its development and diffusion; the relation between innovation and global challenges, like the fight against the climate crisis and the impact of technologies on human labour.
Prerequisites
As per Graduate School Indication
Intended learning outcomes
1) Knowledge and Understanding
At the end of the course students will be able:
- to understand the sources, nature and economic effects of innovation
- to understand the relationship between economic activity and the environment
- to understand the interplay between innovation and sustainability
- to understand main societal consequences of innovation, including inequality, uneven economic performances of countries, regions and sectors
- to understand the main challenges and policy tools related to sustainable growth
2) Applying knowledge and understanding:
The student will be able:
- to carry out analyses and assessments focused on innovation and sustainability in different contexts;
- to analyse innovation activities employing a varied array of indicators and measures, which are adequate to the investigated contexts;
- to identify and interpret environmental policy tools in relation to varying goals and contexts.
3) Making judgements:
We expect students to be able:
- to make judgements upon the validity and effectiveness of the innovation and environmental policies and strategies
- to critically assess reports and evidence in the field of innovation and sustainability
4) Communications Skills
Students will be able to communicate their ideas, proposals, analyses and critical reasoning at a level that is appropriate for graduate students.
5) Learning skills
The complementarity between the theoretical knowledge and the know-how students accumulate during the class activities and groupwork allow them to acquire those dynamic capabilities useful for their career.
Course Contents
The course focuses on key areas:
- An overview of key concepts and taxonomy to understand innovation and the main relationships between economic activities and environmental sustainability.
- Growth and employment effects of innovation
- Firms’ competitiveness and environmental performance
- Green innovation and climate change
- Key policy instruments: IP and R&D policy, as well as mixes including innovation and environmental policies.
Reference Books
Students will be assessed based on the slides and the readings listed below.
Teaching Methods
The course consists of lectures, interactive and data hands-on sessions. The lecture follows and discuss the content of the readings
Assessment Method
The overall evaluation for the students attending class follows the Luiss model and consists of:
1) an ongoing assessment (based on assessed debates) which accounts for the 1/3 of the final grade
2) an oral examination, which accounts for the remaining 2/3 of the final grade.
Thesis assignment criteria
In general, a strong interest in the subject. From a master's degree student, the following skill set is expected: 1) ability to propose a thesis that within scope of the topics presented during the course; 2) ability to conduct quantitative analyses; 3) critical thinking when using data and bibliographical resources.
Week 1
1. Introduction. Taxonomy and measurement of innovation. Lecture
Smith, K., ' Measuring Innovation', in Jan Fagerberg, and David C. Mowery (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Innovation (2006; online edn, Oxford Academic, 2 Sept. 2009) Essential (e) https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199286805.003.0006
Cohen, W. M. (2010). Fifty Years of Empirical Studies of Innovative Activity and Performance. In Hall, B. and Rosenberg, N. (eds) Handbook of the Economics of Innovation. Chapter 4 (except 2.3 and 3) Recommended (r)
Chapters 3 and 4. Swann, GMP (2009). The economics of innovation. An Introduction. Edward Elgar. (r)
2. Adoption and diffusion. Lecture
Geroski, P. A. (2000). Models of technology diffusion. Research Policy, 29(4), 603-625 (e)
Stoneman, P., & Battisti, G. (2010). The diffusion of new technology. In Handbook of the Economics of Innovation (Vol. 2, pp. 733-760). (r)
Week 2
1. Innovation surveys: data, variables and research questions. Hands-on session.
2. Intellectual property rights. Lecture
Chapter 3, 2.1, 4.1&4.2 Scotchmer, S. (2004). Innovation and incentives. MIT press. (e)
Chapter 1, Scotchmer, S. (2004). Innovation and incentives. MIT press. (r)
Mazzoleni, R., & Nelson, R. R. (1998). The benefits and costs of strong patent protection: a contribution to the current debate. Research policy, 27(3), 273-284. (r)
Week 3
1. Patent data. Hands-on session
2. Innovation incentives and policy. Lecture
Metcalfe, S (1995), The Economic foundations of Technology Policy: Equilibrium and Evolutionary Perspectives, in Stoneman, P (ed) Handbook of the Economics of Innovation and Technological Change, Wiley
Sections: 1, 3, 4 (excluding 4.4), 5.1, 5.2, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 8.1, 8.2 (e)
Week 4
1. Innovation, industrial dynamics and firm growth. Lecture
Chapters 6 and 8. Coad, A. (2009). The growth of firms: A survey of theories and empirical evidence. Edward Elgar (e)
Nightingale, P., & Coad, A. (2014). Muppets and gazelles: political and methodological biases in entrepreneurship research. Industrial and corporate change, 23(1), 113-143 (r)
2. Geography of innovation. Lecture
Feldman, M. P., and Kogler, D. F. (2010). Stylized facts in the geography of innovation (Chapter 8). In Hall, BH and Resenberg N (Eds) Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, volume 1, 381-410 (e)
Week 5
1. The systemic nature of innovation, cooperation and alliances. Lecture
Hagedoorn, J., Link, A. N., Vonortas, N. S. (2000). Research partnerships. Research policy, 29(4-5), 567-586 (e)
Laursen, K., Salter, A. (2006). Open for innovation: the role of openness in explaining innovation performance among UK manufacturing firms. Strategic management journal, 27(2), 131-150 (e)
Foray, D., Lissoni, F. (2010). University research and public–private interaction. In Handbook of the Economics of Innovation (Vol. 1, pp. 275-314). North-Holland (r)
2. Innovation and internationalisation. Lecture
Keller, W. (2010), Chapter 19 - International Trade, Foreign Direct Investment, and Technology Spillovers, Bronwyn H. Hall, Nathan Rosenberg (eds), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation,Elsevier (e)
Javorcik (2004), “Does Foreign Direct Investment Increase the Productivity of Domestic Firms? In Search of Spillovers Through Backward Linkages”, American Economic Review, 94(3), 605–627. (r)
Week 6
1. Innovation and labour. Lecture
- Autor, D. (2015). Why Are There Still So Many Jobs? The History and Future of Workplace Automation. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 29(3), 3-30. (e)
- Frey, C. B., Osborne, M. A. (2017). The future of employment: how susceptible are jobs to computerisation? Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 114, 254-280. (r)
2. Labour and skills data. Hands-on session
Week 7
1. Innovation, growth and development. Lecture
Verspagen, B. (2006) Innovation and Economic Growth, in Fagerberg, J., Mowery, D. C., & Nelson, R. R. (Eds.). (2005). The Oxford handbook of innovation. Oxford University Press, 487-513 Chapter 18 (e)
2. Technological sovereignty. Lecture
Edler, J., Blind, K., Kroll, H., & Schubert, T. (2023). Technology sovereignty as an emerging frame for innovation policy. Defining rationales, ends and means. Research policy, 52(6), 104765. (e)
Kroll, H., Assessing Open Strategic Autonomy, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2024, doi:10.2760/767279, JRC136359. (r)
Week 8
1. Assessed debates
2. Assessed debates
Week 9
1. Innovation and the environment: directed technological change and policy instruments. Lecture
Jaffe, A., Newell, R.G. and Stavins, R.N. (2003), Technological Change and the Environment, in Maler and Vincent (eds) Handbook of Environmental Economics, Vol 1, Elsevier (e)
Rodrik, D. (2014). Green industrial policy. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 30(3), 469-491 (r)
2. Sustainability meets profitability. Porter Hypothesis and “Does it pay to be green?”. Lecture
Ambec, S. & Lanoie, P. (2008). Does it pay to be green? A systematic overview. Academy of Management Perspectives, 22(4), 45-62. (e)
Porter, M. E., & Van der Linde, C. (1995). Toward a new conception of the environment-competitiveness relationship. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(4), 97-118. (r)
Week 10
1. Green technologies, sourcing and complexity. Lecture
Barbieri, N., Marzucchi, A., & Rizzo, U. (2020). Knowledge sources and impacts on subsequent inventions: Do green technologies differ from non-green ones?. Research Policy, 49(2), 103901. (e)
Barbieri, N., Marzucchi, A., & Rizzo, U. (2023). Green technologies, interdependencies, and policy. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, 118, 102791. (e)
2. Patent and survey data to analyse environmental innovation. Hands-on session
Week 11
1. Economic competitiveness, FDI, trade and the environment. Lecture
Levinson, A., Taylor, M. S. (2008). Unmasking the pollution haven effect. International economic review, 49(1), 223-254. (r)
Dechezleprêtre, A., Sato, M. (2017). The impacts of environmental regulations on competitiveness. Review of environmental economics and policy, Vol. 11(2). (e)
2. Economic growth and the environment. Lecture
Grossman, G. M., Krueger, A. B. (1995). Economic growth and the environment. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 110(2), 353-377. (r)
Week 12
Week 12
1. New directions: the twin transition
Diodato, D., Huergo, E., Moncada-Paternò-Castello, P., Rentocchini, F., & Timmermans, B. (2023). Introduction to the special issue on “the twin (digital and green) transition: handling the economic and social challenges”. Industry and Innovation, 30(7), 755-765. (e)
Montresor, S., & Vezzani, A. (2023). Digital technologies and eco-innovation. Evidence of the twin transition from Italian firms. Industry and Innovation, 30(7), 766-800. (e)
Faggian, A., Marzucchi, A., & Montresor, S. (2025). Regions facing the ‘twin transition’: combining regional green and digital innovations. Regional Studies, 59(1), 2398555. (r)
2. New directions: the circular economy
Ghisellini, P., Cialani, C., & Ulgiati, S. (2016). A review on circular economy: the expected transition to a balanced interplay of environmental and economic systems. Journal of Cleaner production, 114, 11-32. (e)
Cainelli, G., D’Amato, A., & Mazzanti, M. (2020). Resource efficient eco-innovations for a circular economy: Evidence from EU firms. Research Policy, 49(1), 103827. (r)
Week 13
1. Assessed debate
2. Assessed debate
Week 14
1. Innovation game session
2. Wrap-up and Q&A