Abstract:

This paper studies and measures the output of sustainable innovation in the OECD area. Results are based on patent records and their use as indicators of innovation output. Two points have to be noted: First, It is of particular importance, when examining the innovation output of a broad area, which comprises of many and different countries, to identify main trends, highlight major innovation fields, locate fields of dynamism and indicate fields for further development and specialization. Second, the reference to the historical evolution or long-tern perspective is necessary or even inevitable for such an analysis. In this context, this paper examines patents extracted by the OECD patent database for the total of OECD countries for a period of 13 years to study the innovation output in the sustainable area, aiming at providing a deep understanding of the existing situation and an objective statistical reference for future research in this field. Results show that sustainable innovation accounts for 6.97%, with the fields ‘general environmental management’ and ‘emissions abatement and fuel efficiency in transportation’ being the most important. In addition, the best sustainable innovation can be found in four European countries (e.g. Slovak Republic, Luxembourg, Greece and Denmark) and Japan.