Geographies of mission-oriented innovation policy

Abstract

The last two decades have seen a rise of mission-oriented innovation policy with greater focus on sustainability challenges and problems as drivers for innovation and industrial policy and building prominently on transition research. Missions are often framed as spatially blind endeavors, disconnected from the intricate geographies of innovation and the socio-spatial contexts in which they unfold. This lack of spatial considerations not only devalues the role of cities and regions as designated sites for policy experimentation and implementation but also limits the societal and democratic legitimacy of missions by insufficiently engaging citizens and local communities. How can a place-based approach to mission policies help identify and tackle wicked problems while promoting transitions? Reflecting on this question, this editorial summarizes and synthesizes the results and key themes emerging from the different contributions that constitute this special issue. It discusses how a more explicit geographical perspective that acknowledges scale, place, and space could address shortcomings of contemporary mission-oriented innovation policies. It concludes, first, that anchoring of missions to place requires the active framing, translation and re-framing of global challenges into locally relevant goals, strategies and actions, and building legitimacy through place-based leadership. Second, the contextualization of missions in space highlights how place-specific capacities, political processes, and innovation cultures shape implementation. Third, the politics and scaling of missions demands careful navigation between different spatial levels.