Cities as Collaborative Innovation Platforms

Taina Tukiainen,Seppo Leminen,Mika Westerlund

doi:10.22215/timreview/933

Abstract

In this article, we focus on the role of a city as an orchestrator for innovation. We argue that cities should establish active dialogue with their citizens, and private and public sectors actors to co-create, develop, test, and offer service innovations that utilize diverse sets of platforms such as living labs. Our research contributes to the discussions of open and user innovations from the perspective of cities as communities that involve and integrate citizens and companies to collaborative innovation activities. While acknowledging that cities are platforms for simultaneous and divergent innovation initiatives, we identify four principal types of collaborative innovation. Cities serve as platforms for: i) improving everyday life; ii) conducting consumer and citizen experiments; iii) experimenting and implementing new technologies and services; and iv) creating new innovations and economies. Finally, we offer guidelines for fostering collaborative innovation activities between the public and private sectors. The life of our city is rich in poetic and marvelous subjects. We are enveloped and steeped as though in an atmosphere of the marvelous; but we do not notice it.

Highlights

Cities as Collaborative Innovation PlatformsWe argue that cities should establish active dialogue with their citizens, and private and public sectors actors to co-create, develop, test, and offer service innovations that utilize diverse sets of platforms such as living labs
In developed nations, the high degree of urbanization has left governments, city planners, and economic development managers with the challenge of stimulating innovation to enable growth and improve the lives of their citizens
This article aims to understand cities as collaborative innovation platforms based on the living lab model, which seeks to engage citizens with industry and other stakeholders

Summary

Cities as Collaborative Innovation Platforms

We argue that cities should establish active dialogue with their citizens, and private and public sectors actors to co-create, develop, test, and offer service innovations that utilize diverse sets of platforms such as living labs. Our research contributes to the discussions of open and user innovations from the perspective of cities as communities that involve and integrate citizens and companies to collaborative innovation activities. While acknowledging that cities are platforms for simultaneous and divergent innovation initiatives, we identify four principal types of collaborative innovation. Cities serve as platforms for: i) improving everyday life; ii) conducting consumer and citizen experiments; iii) experimenting and implementing new technologies and services; and iv) creating new innovations and economies. We offer guidelines for fostering collaborative innovation activities between the public and private sectors

Introduction

Living Labs and Collaborative Innovation Platforms in Cities

Research Design

Conclusion