3. Results
The situation of compliance of the Tyumen innovation support infrastructure with SD ethics is presented in
Table 3 and formalized in matrices consisting of absolute values (
Table 2, Equations (2) and (3)) and relative values (Equations (4) and (5)).
During 2009–2015, most attention was paid to innovations with implicit tactical and operative economic effects and tactical environmental effects—from 31 innovation projects in total, 14 showed mid-term economic effects, 14 showed short-term economic effects, and 13 showed mid-term environmental effects. During 2016–2017, among 66 supported innovation projects, 49 had an economic impact, 24 had a social impact, and only 13 had an environmental impact. Economic innovations mostly were focused on short-term economic returns (39); some considered mid-term economic effects (9), and only one project implied strategic economic effects.
In both periods, innovations providing strategic SD effects comprised a very insignificant share of the supported pool of innovations: 8% during 2009–2015 and only 2% during 2016–2017. During 2009–2015, most of the innovation effects (58%) were at the tactical level of solving SD problems. During 2016–2017, tactical innovations decreased to 24%. During 2016–2017, the focus of innovation support policy noticeably shifted to operative level innovation effects—the share of operative innovations was 72%, in comparison with 34% in the previous period.
Again, according to the matrices above (Equations (2)–(5)), the main tendency of the regional innovation support policy was strengthening the focus on short-term regional prosperity during 2016–2017 in comparison with 2009–2015. The shares of innovation projects affecting social and environmental spheres were redistributed: the share of projects with environmental effects decreased, and the share of projects with social effects increased during 2016–2017, but their total share stayed in the minority—less than 50%.
During 2009–2015, 45% of the supported innovation projects were mining operations and oil and gas extraction, and 39% of innovation projects were in both the mining industry combined with other segments (production, services, machine building, and construction). Only 16% of the innovation projects examined focused on other economic spheres outside the region’s mining operations and oil and gas extraction activities. During 2016–2017, the share of innovations focusing on mining operations and oil and gas extraction indicated an overall increase of project support to 67% of the total which the technopark took under its wing. Simultaneously, the amount of innovation projects focusing on the effects of other industries decreased by 24%.
4. Discussion
Analysis of basic conditions for effective sustainability-oriented innovation activities revealed an increasingly reactive and timeserving character of the Tyumen innovation support policy. The majority of supported innovation projects served mid-term and short-term regional sustainability goals. A focus on quick investment returns, maximization of profit, and commercialization in innovation support decision-making determined the innovation support policy in the Tyumen region, while systemic SD effects (ecological, economic, and social) were given minor consideration.
In addition, this expedient approach to sustainable development has become entrenched over time. The total share of innovation projects characterized by operative effects grew from 34% (2009–2015) to 72% (2016–2017). These results reflect prevailing shot-termism in innovation policy decision-making [
43,
58], and serve to demonstrate the general unsoundness of today’s innovation efforts initially aimed at SD goals. The employed typological analysis allowed the research to reveal the reason for this “unsoundness” at the level of basic conditions—the lack of marked focus on systemic and long-term SD effects. The model also allowed us to explain the extent to which existing research and development and national systems of innovation frameworks for science, technology, and innovation policy are currently unfit for addressing longer-term environmental and social challenges [
21].
The findings indicate that sponsored innovation projects primarily served the goal of economic growth at the mid-term and short-term levels. This particular case reflects continuing domination of economic growth ideas in social development [
1,
15]. Environmental innovations received government support, but they also focused on the tactical level, i.e., technologies for waste-free or resource-saving production, and technologies preventing pollution and other environmental threats in mining industries, without a radical shift to developing technologies and innovations in non-mining industries. During 2016–2017, environmental innovations had the least share of support and achieved environmental impact only at the operational level. However, this is not enough strategic effort to making necessary major changes toward a sustainable level of depletion of nature [
4,
26].
During 2009–2015, the least attention was paid to innovations targeting the social sphere: only three projects dedicated to improving human safety and automation of manual operations were supported. During 2016–2017, the number of projects aimed at the social aspect of sustainability substantially increased (from 3 up to 24), but the focus remained on solving social problems at the operative level [
70]. Despite the increase in the number of projects, we cannot assert that innovation support policy really has an effect on common prosperity and long-term vitality. Strategic social innovations providing radical political changes and transformation of social behavior are crucial for overcoming system collapse [
26,
71,
72].
The typological analysis indicates the evident focus of Tyumen innovation support policy on solving the SD problems primarily at tactical and operative levels. Supported innovation projects focused mostly on regional short-term prosperity and economic growth [
58,
73]. In other words, the focus of regional innovation support policy remained on achieving economic effects without radical societal transition to a sustainable development path. Supported innovation projects focused mainly on “curing symptoms” of regional economic, social, or environmental problems, but not on systemically eliminating their fundamental causes.
The problem is not in the lack of peoples’ inventiveness or talents [
74]. Rather, the problem is how to mobilize these assets [
75], or to be more precise, of how to manage already existing innovative potential. “There are promising new technologies with better environmental performance. But many of these new technologies are not (yet) taken up” [
76]. This is partly related to economic reasons, but also to social, cultural, infrastructural, and regulatory reasons [
76]. Considering the possibility of supporting existing innovations with greater SD potential and the potential of innovation support policy to foster innovation with deeper and more scalable SD effects, we should begin to solve this problem with a consistent methodological background for decision-making in the sphere of innovation support. Developing and implementing strategic systemic innovation requires a different approach to making decisions about supporting innovations; one based on a systematic, long term vision [
21,
65,
66]. This change requires an updated toolbox for decision-making support, such as the typological analysis presented in this work. Theoretically, developing and testing tools, increasing the impact of innovation activities on achieving SD goals, and complementing modern research in the sphere of SD societal transition will strengthen them practically and methodically [
40,
43,
70,
76,
77].
Until 2015, the Tyumen regional innovation support policy was mainly directed at supporting mining industries (
Figure 1). During 2016–2017, the priorities of the innovation support policy shifted from mining industries to other ones. The share of supported innovations that targeted non-mining operations or oil and gas extraction increased from 39% during 2009–2015 to 67% during 2016–2017. This situation corresponds to the traditional structure of the Tyumen regional economy, which is mainly based on oil and gas production and has its constructive and destructive side. There are some objective stabilizing (conservative) forces providing current system stability that are reflected in Geel’s notion that, “existing systems are “locked in” at multiple dimensions, they are stable and not easy to change” [
76]. In addition, long-term system vitality may require a major transition to different structures and conditions, eliminating accumulated systemic problems. From this point of view, the current system stability, based on a resource-oriented economy, obviously hampers the region’s deep transition to SD and a green economy. Regional elites play a major role in regional innovation policy. Regional innovation policy “as usual”, or a resource-oriented economy, is supported mostly by the interests of particular market agents (such as oil and gas companies) [
72], with prejudice to the interests of the long-term vitality of the regional socio–economic system and its sustainable development over the long-term. As Motesharrei et al. noticed, a buffer of wealth allows “elites to continue “business as usual” despite the impending catastrophe” [
26].
There is still a strong need in the system for socio–technological innovations and to change consumer culture in general to provide SD societal transition. This requires strong governmental support of strategic environmental, social, and economic innovations that sufficiently decrease the depletion of natural resources, replacing unclean and unsafe technologies, production, and industries with totally clean and safe ones, and favoring changing social–economic relationships into more fair, constructive, and sustainable ones in the long-term.
5. Conclusions
5.1. Recommendations
The crucial role of social innovations in achieving SD goals should be understood and accepted by society and by a government. Specifically, primary support should be provided to the innovations that are able to transform basic mechanisms of the current social–economic system, in which global problems continue to be generated. Strategic social innovations need to change the general culture of disunity, consumption, and competitiveness into humane and collaborative ones.
The suggested typological analysis technique can be used as a highly-needed “simple stabilizing feedback mechanism” [
1] that facilitates the sustainable development of a complicated social system. Implementing the analysis technique in the decision-making processes would help change social behavior and expectations, and facilitate institutional change regarding norms, standards, and regulations [
34]. Involving people in the processes of innovation support decision-making, monitoring the results of implementing innovation, and estimating them in accordance with strategic SD goals are the essential factors for a socio–technical transition towards long-term sustainability.
In a period of deep social transition, innovation activity acts as an adaptive mechanism, transforming the society from one quality statement to another. In this period of transformation, the quality rather than quantity of innovation activities is important. To increase the impact of innovation activities in achieving SD goals innovation decision-making policy development and support should be designed in accordance with basic principles: (1) the accordance of innovation activities with sustainable development ethics, and (2) their marked focus on systemic and long-term SD effects. Prioritization of supporting SD-oriented strategic innovation will provide a successful transition to the next level of regional sustainability and will provide new frameworks for other types of innovations.
5.2. Research Implications
Research results impact and complement the existing research on estimating innovation activities’ effectiveness in the context of SD societal transition. The suggested typological analysis technique might be integrated into the complex assessment of the innovation system’s quality and the innovation policies’ results. It aims to increase the effectiveness of innovation support institutes, programs of innovation development, and innovation systems on the global, national, regional, local, and organizational levels. The typological analysis provides information for redesigning innovation systems, innovation policies, and decision-making policies through different bodies of innovation infrastructure, increasing their impact on achieving SD goals.
As Van der Vleuten noticed, “Deep Transitions research is timely and urgent; however, in sustainability transition studies, individual systems remain the dominant unit of analysis” [
70]. However, the suggested typological analysis technique does not have conceptual limitations in its application in the analysis and redesign of overall world innovation policy and development, despite the fact that it was tested on the example of a particular regional innovation support system.
As was noticed by Cancino et al., partial theoretical perspectives and experiences of innovation effects lead to “significant oversight of their potential and limitations” [
50]. This research adds to the theoretical base of innovation assessment and decision-making from a SD perspective, suggesting a new typological matrix classification for innovation and an appropriate typological analysis technique that can be used both in theoretical research (e.g., in an ontological analysis of innovation systems and policies) and in practical analysis and decision-making.
5.3. Limitations and Further Research Development
In this research, the typological analysis was applied to one main object of the regional innovation support system. In further research this method can be extended to: (1) all objects and programs of an innovation support system (grants for innovative projects, governmental support programs for small and medium enterprises, innovation competitions, etc.); (2) all elements of the regional innovation system (science, education, innovation policy, social innovations); and (3) different levels—local, organizational, regional, national, or global. It is felt that this method will be useful for both the analysis and redesign of innovation activities (systems, policies) in the most effective way to achieve sufficient SD social transformation.
Nevertheless, the results of the typological analysis of Tyumen Technopark innovation support activities were quite representative, because Technopark is the main institute of the Tyumen innovation support infrastructure and the only one that provides systemic government support of regional innovations at all stages.
One of the research limitations is analyzing data in unequal time periods. The reason for that was a significant difference in the number of supported projects in the Technopark’s development period during 2005 till 2016 (31 projects) and the last two years of its work in the period 2016–2017 (66 projects). These pools of supported innovation were analyzed and compared to find if there were trends regarding changing the focus of innovation support policy in the last years. The analysis of time series data can be done annually if the work of the infrastructure object is quite stable in the number of supported innovation projects.
Typological analysis of the basic conditions for effective sustainability-oriented innovation activities allowed us to grasp the character of innovation support policy and develop appropriate recommendations. In this research, a number of supported innovation projects were used as elements of the typological matrix because of their data relevance and availability. However, the procedure of the suggested typological analysis can be modified and other indicators can be used in the typological matrix if necessary data are available, such as the budget of each project, size of governmental support, or monetary equivalent of the SD effect. This will allow researchers to reveal more specific details in the analysis of basic conditions for the effective sustainability-oriented innovation activities, and allow them to extend and clarify recommendations for redesigning decision-making policies.
In the framework of the article, we described only one case for application of the suggested method, but we hope for its wide application in further innovation. The suggested typology will be helpful for innovators, government, investors, and society for the purposes of making SD-oriented decisions and matching interests of different groups in the innovation sphere.