Driving research on eco-innovation systems: Crossing the boundaries of innovation systems

Abstract

Sustainability is now a part of all areas of today's society and has become a cornerstone of economic, social, and environmental prosperity. Its pivotal role means that sustainability has also influenced the innovation process. Over the last few decades, new innovation-related concepts linked to sustainable development have emerged in the form of environmental, green, sustainable, and eco-innovations; nevertheless, technological and innovation developments still occur within the boundaries of an innovation system. Innovation systems possess unique characteristics that shape activities, actions, and decisions. The separate bodies of literature on eco-innovation and innovation systems are extensive; however, the status of the literature on the intersection of these two topics is less clear. This study provides an overview of the scientific literature in the area where eco-innovation and innovation systems meet, and a bibliometric analysis shows that the joint study of eco-innovation and innovation systems is an unexplored knowledge field. Thus, the main authors and documents that provide the foundation of the literature on eco-innovation and innovation systems were identified, and theoretical knowledge was grouped into four clusters according to thematic areas: Cluster 1 related to eco-innovation; Cluster 2 related to innovation systems; and Clusters 3 and 4, which include the elements that constitute and interact within eco-innovation systems. We hope that this study will encourage scholars to conduct research on eco-innovation systems, which could have positive implications for the design and implementation of new policies and instruments to achieve sustainable development.