Measuring Eco-Innovation

P are constantly searching for ways to reconcile the goals of economic growth and environmental protection. Underlying this is the belief that the introduction of cleaner technologies and more effi cient environmental management processes could help reduce the costs of environmental protection and contribute to growth and jobs. Prince Hassan of Jordan and President of the Club of Rome noted in a 2006 speech, that “... the markets of the future are green,” drawing attention to the growing scarcity of oil, water and other natural resources that is causing people to place a greater value on resource effi ciency and alternative resources, expanding ecological awareness beyond niche sectors. In reality, however, a large gap exists between current practices and the eco-friendly market of the future. To successfully manage this transition, new technologies, service innovations and alternative systems of energy, mobility, agriculture and waste management are needed. Th e potential market for so-called eco technologies has been variously estimated at between 500 billion euro and 1,000 billion euro in 2005, with Roland Berger Strategy Consultants predicting a global market of 2,200 billion euro by 2020. In this scenario, the importance of eco-innovation is likely to grow, including in emerging economies and developing countries. Unfortunately the statistical basis for eco-innovation is poor. Th e main sources of information are sales data on environmental goods and services, case studies and one-off surveys. We lack comprehensive information about the eco-innovation behaviour of companies, the macro-eff ects of eco-innovation activities and the links between micro-macro level actions.