Innovation Studies Group (ISG) is a part of the Research Centre for Knowledge, Science, Technology and Innovation Studies (TaSTI), Faculty of Social Sciences. ISG's research focus on innovation activities, innovation policies and innovations' space and significance in contemporary societies.
Research focus and goals
Interest goes essentially beyond any single organization to wider innovation environments such as innovation (eco-)systems, communities and open innovation platforms. During the recent years, the group's focus has shifted towards inclusion and expansion of innovation activities (e.g. new countries and regions, sectors and societal stakeholder groups).
Innovation Studies Group has two major goals: It intends both to produce academic knowledge for the international scholarly society and to contribute to socially and ecologically sustainable innovation activities through development activities and education.
Globelics Association, an international scholarly society for innovation and development studies, is a focal network for ISG. The group has organised Globelics Academy PhD summer school every second year since 2008. As a result, there is an international network of PhD alumni covering especially the global south.
The most recent projects conducted by the group include the following:
- Circular Economy Models in Namibia – Capacity Building | Tampere Universities (tuni.fi) 2024
- Sustainable and Responsible Food Province 9/2023-8/2024
- Fostering the digital transition of the SADC countries' educational system 1/2024-6/2024 (co-creation project TAU & TAMK)
- AiRRhow Center of Excellence in Civil Aviation 2024
- MAinstreaming Responsible Innovation in European S3 [MARIE] 1/2017-12/2019
- Kampus-sote: Open innovation platforms in social and health care sector 2018-2020
- Inclusion in Innovation Policies (book project)
- Co-creation of a Namibian Smart Community [SmartCom] 6/2016-10/2018
- Open Innovation Platforms in Urban and Regional Development 5/2015 - 1/2018
- Knowledge Triangle Project (OECD TIP-CSTP) 2015 - 2016
- Open Innovation on the Borderline of University-Enterprise Cooperation [Open-UNIC] 1/2013 - 12/2014
- Towards Inclusive Use of Intellectual Capital - Innovation communities integrating foreign human capital [INCO] 1/2013 - 1/2015.
Other members
Researchers: Researcher, Dr. Anna Martikainen; Research assistant Aino Ollila; Researcher Sonja Tiitola; University Researcher, Adj. Professor Mika Kautonen; Researcher, doctoral student Nadja Nordling.
Affiliated PhD researchers: Ilari Lindy (SAIS/Niras Finland), Antti Alaja (Kalevi Sorsa Foundation), Jukka Hyvönen (Aalto University), Tomi Särkioja (the Ministry for Foreign Affairs).
Contact persons
Mika Kautonen
Adjunct professor, university researcher
mika.kautonen [at] tuni.fi
+358 40 551 9282