Specialization, Diversification, and Environmental Technology Life Cycle

Abstract

The paper analyses whether and to what extent regional related and unrelated variety matter for the development of green technology, and whether their influence differs over the technology life-cycle. Using patent and socio-economic data on a thirtyyear panel of US States, we find that unrelated variety is a positive predictor of green innovative activities. When unpacked over the life-cycle, unrelated variety is the main driver of green technology development in early stages while related variety becomes more prominent as the technology enters into maturity.

Diversifying in green technologies in European regions: does political support matter?

“…Colombelli and Quatraro (2019) found that a local knowledge base of related technological fields had a positive effect on the creation of green start-ups in Italian regions, but did not find support for unrelated variety. Barbieri, Perruchas, and Consoli (2018) showed that unrelated variety is more prominent in the early stage of the green technology life cycle, while related variety becomes more important as a green technology matures. 2.…”

Recombinant invention in solar photovoltaic technology: can geographical proximity bridge technological distance?

“…However, the recombination of unrelated technologies is found to be especially important in the earlier development stage of new technologies, whereas in the later stage the recombination of related technologies is more prominent (Krafft et al, 2011). Barbieri et al (2020b) observed a similar pattern in renewable energy technologies which are considered more complex than non-green technology because they rely on diverse knowledge inputs from unrelated technologies (Barbieri et al, 2020a;Nemet, 2012).…”

“…Although recent studies by Barbieri et al (2020b) and Sbardella et al (2018) suggested that the renewable energy technologies might have entered a more mature phase based on the more prominent role of related variety they observed, there is a trade-off between the short-and long-term benefits in such recombinant inventions (Zeppini & van den Bergh, 2011). The recombination of related technologies can facilitate immediate technology improvement.…”

Impacts of Manufacturing Specialized and Diversified Agglomeration on the Eco-Innovation Efficiency—A Nonlinear Test from Dynamic Perspective

“…Besides, according to the life cycle theory of agglomeration, manufacturing agglomeration is a gradual process. In different agglomeration stages, factors such as the completeness of shared public facilities, the level of cooperation and competition organizations, and the efficiency of research and development vary from each other [55]. Therefore, the positive and negative externalities brought by agglomeration are dynamic and the numerical relationship between positive externalities and negative externalities are distinct in various stages, namely, whether agglomeration promotes or inhibits EIE is constantly changing.…”

“…The increasingly frequent technical collaboration and communication between enterprises facilitate the overflow of heterogeneous knowledge. Barbieri et al [55] pointed out that diversification is the main driver of the development of green technology in the early stages of the technology life cycle. The heterogeneous knowledge spillover generated by diversified agglomeration can effectively promote EIE, and the promotion effect is greater than the inhibition effect of negative environmental externalities on the EIE.…”