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A Conference with 400 participants from 5 continents, where 208 scientific papers were presented, which were part of 15 scientific areas related to Innovation and Development, with 8 keynote speeches, 8 special sessions and 2 special events of Greek interest, took place in Athens on 11-13/10/2017, at the premises of the NCFSRD “Demokritos” Conference Center.
The theme of the 15th annual Conference of the global research network Globelics concerned the contribution of innovation and capacity building in the context of the dominant role of the financial sector (financialisation) and the uneven development of the global economy, with particular emphasis on the search for a new role for the state, the productive sector and social actors.
The conference was organized by the Industrial and Energy Economics Laboratory (LIEE) of the School of Chemical Engineering of NTUA (with Professor Yiannis Kalogirou, Director of the Industrial and Energy Economics Laboratory, as Chairman of the Organizing Committee), in collaboration with the Secretariat of Globelics (which for this period is based at the Institute of Economics of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and headed by the Secretary General of Globelics, Professor Jose Cassiolato), the Research University Institute of Communications and Computer Systems (RICCS) of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering of NTUA (with Dean Professor Nektarios Kozyris in charge of the Conference), with the support of SIDA (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency) and the European Commission. The Conference was held under the auspices of the Bank of Greece and the Municipality of Athens, and was supported by important industrial enterprises, institutions and organizations operating in Greece and Europe. The Rector of NTUA, Professor Yiannis Golias, declared the Conference open.
Globelics (Global Network for Economics of Learning, Innovation, and Competence Building Systems) is a global network of researchers from developed and developing countries who investigate the role that innovation, knowledge and the building of skills and capabilities can play in economic and sustainable development.
This year’s event was the first to be held in a European country and the choice of Greece was undoubtedly symbolic, meaningful and honorable. The timing was also particularly symbolic, as this year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the School of Chemical Engineering and the School of Electrical Engineering of NTUA and the 180th anniversary of the founding of NTUA.
The conference featured 8 keynote speeches by Bengt-Åke Lundvall, Richard Nelson, William Lazonick, Maria Joao Rodrigues, Nikos Christodoulakis, Kostas Fotakis, Elissavet Lipiatou and Giorgos Kaminis. Particularly important was the presence of the emeritus professor of Columbia, one of the most cited in the scientific literature (over 150,000 citations in Google Scholar) and one of the founders of modern evolutionary economics and the economics of innovation. 188 scientific papers were presented by distinguished and young researchers, among them 20 by Greek scientists from various University Institutions. In addition, two sessions were also organized, where 20 scientific papers were presented in Poster format as well as 14 books and collective volumes that were recently published. In a geographical distribution, the invited speakers and presenters from abroad came approximately: 70 from Europe, 65 from Latin America, 12 from the USA/Canada, 55 from Asia and 33 from Africa.
At the same time, 8 special sessions were organized, in which a total of five Greek academics (Kostis Vaitsos, Tasos Giannitsis, Yannis Kalogirou, Alexandros Kyrtsis and Achilleas Mitsos) and thirty others from five continents participated. The topics of the special sessions were as follows: a) Democracy, development and innovation, b) Financial markets, technological innovation and business orientation, c) Dialogue on the framework for promoting innovation, mutual learning and cooperation between international donor agencies, d) Public policies for innovation, economic and industrial development: lessons learned, opportunities and trends in the context of the global economy, e) Development of indicators for Science, Technology and Innovation necessary for inclusive economic development or otherwise an inclusive development (Inclusive Development), f) The role of innovation in the creative reconstruction of African-European relations for mutual benefit, g) The formulation of a European strategy for exiting the crisis and stagnation, h) The transformation of innovation and the impact of the ideas that lead to transformation on the way view of innovation systems.
Also, two events of Greek interest were held, the first aiming to highlight the innovative work, good practices, capabilities and prospects of the Greek research, production and business system and the second focusing on the exploitation of research results and technical and organizational ideas of researchers, students and graduates of Greek polytechnics, universities and research centers.
The first, coordinated by Associate Professor A. Tsakanikas, was attended by representatives of the Greek production system (ELKEME- Hellenic Center for Metals Research SA of the VIOHALCO group, Korres SA, Hellenic Petroleum, Titan Cement SA, Ericsson Hellas, Eurobank and the Association of Greek Food Industries) who focused on the sectors that can support a strategy for exiting the crisis. In the second, the importance of cooperation between industry and higher education institutions/research centers was highlighted as a necessary condition for launching a new development trajectory of higher quality, which will improve the structural competitiveness of the Greek economy and its position in the international division of labor. The discussion was attended by 14 speakers, young entrepreneurs, senior executives of international organizations that support business schemes, members of the academic community, as well as representatives from start-up financing bodies.
Four cultural tours were also organized for the participants, to the National Archaeological Museum, the Acropolis Museum, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, and the historic center of Athens, so that the participants could come into contact with Greek culture and get to know Athens better.
On the day before (October 10, 2017) of the Conference, the joint meeting of the Organizing Committee with the Scientific Council and the Secretariat of the Globelics Network was held at the Zografou Polytechnic Campus, while on the evening of the same day, the Municipality of Athens hosted a reception for the members of the Organizing Committee and the Scientific Council at the City Hall. The Mayor of Athens was also the keynote speaker at the gala dinner hosted by the Latsis Foundation for the conference participants on the evening of the second day of the Conference. As part of the gala dinner, a short film (Asterix-style) entitled Globelics in Athens was also shown, which humorously referred to the preparation and holding of the conference and which was created by the volunteers.
Finally, it is worth highlighting the special contribution to the success of the conference of a broad community of 133 volunteers (undergraduate and postgraduate students) from 9 university institutions, who supported with particular enthusiasm, responsibility and hard work, all the activities that took place during the three-day event.
In the context of the relevant publicity of the Conference, five distinguished conference participants, professors Richard Nelson, William Lazonick, Franco Malerba, Carlota Perez, Maria Joao Rodrigues, were invited to give interviews to the Greek press (“Kathimerini tis Kyriakis”, “To Vima” and “Ta Nea”), while the initiative of the Conference volunteers was presented in the “K” magazine of Kathimerini. Representatives of the Organizing Committee (Kalogirou, Tsakanikas, Protogerou) also gave a press conference before the start of the conference on its goals and content. There were also many publications regarding the conference in the printed press and online media, while several interviews were given by members of the Conference organizing committee to Athens 9.84, which also hosted a special broadcast with the Conference volunteers, and the conference was also broadcast on SKAI television. The keynote speeches as well as the 8 special sessions of the Conference were videotaped and some of them will be posted on the Blod.gr website (Electronic Library) of the Bodossaki Foundation with the aim of wider dissemination of the conference results and their utilization as educational and informative material. Communication sponsors were the newspaper “Kathimerini” and the radio station “Athens 984”.
Additionally, during the conference, interviews were held with many distinguished speakers and the material was videotaped with the aim of creating a film dedicated to the Conference, during which they will present their views on key issues of innovation, technological development and economic growth as well as their impressions of the Conference.
In detail, the Bulletin’s announcement on the official website of the Foundation is located here.