The Globalisation of Technology and the European Innovation System

Abstract

The process of European integration is based not only on a customs union, a common agricultural policy and a single currency, but also on the circulation of knowledge among individual member countries. This concerns not merely the interchange of cultural and social values, but also the belief that economic growth and welfare in Europe is closely linked to the ability to generate and diffuse new technologies. It is therefore not surprising that a major policy concern of governments, business and trade unions is the search for ways to promote scientific and technological activities and to foster innovation in firms.