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Knowledge dynamics and sources of eco-innovation: Mapping the Green Chemistry community

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  • Epicoco, Marianna
  • Oltra, Vanessa
  • Maïder Saint, Jean

Abstract

Over the last few decades, the interest for developing a more sustainable chemistry has increased worldwide and has triggered the proliferation of new knowledge. The present article aims at investigating the dynamics of scientific knowledge underlying this emergent field, the main countries and organizations involved, and the factors that have shaped the evolution of the field. In order to circumscribe such a still fluid area of research, we first show how an epistemic community around the concept of Green Chemistry (GC) has emerged and materialized. We then build an original dataset of scientific publications generated by this community and apply two algorithms for the analysis of citation networks. That allows us to identify and analyze the scientific knowledge that laid the foundations of the GC community and the main scientific trajectory that emerged along its whole evolution. The results highlight that the GC community, strongly supported by the US EPA, has grown exponentially since 2000 and has spread among a wide range of countries, including emerging countries. The results also suggest that policy and industry interests, as well as regulation, have played a significant role in shaping the emergence and evolution of GC.

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  • Epicoco, Marianna & Oltra, Vanessa & Maïder Saint, Jean, 2014. "Knowledge dynamics and sources of eco-innovation: Mapping the Green Chemistry community," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 388-402.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:81:y:2014:i:c:p:388-402
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2013.03.006
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    3. Gnekpe, Christian & Plantec, Quentin, 2023. "Regulatory push-pull and technological knowledge dynamics of circular economy innovation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    4. Julien Jacob, 2015. "Innovation in Risky Industries under Liability Law: The Case of Double-Impact Innovations," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 171(3), pages 385-404, September.
    5. Sara Walton & Annie Zhang & Conor O'Kane, 2020. "Energy eco‐innovations for sustainable development: Exploring organizational strategic capabilities through an energy cultures framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 812-826, March.
    6. JS Keshminder & Pablo del Río, 2019. "The missing links? The indirect impacts of drivers on eco‐innovation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(5), pages 1100-1118, September.
    7. Kim, Erin H.J. & Jeong, Yoo Kyung & Kim, YongHwan & Song, Min, 2022. "Exploring scientific trajectories of a large-scale dataset using topic-integrated path extraction," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1).
    8. Mazzanti, Massimiliano & Rizzo, Ugo, 2017. "Diversely moving towards a green economy: Techno-organisational decarbonisation trajectories and environmental policy in EU sectors," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 111-116.
    9. Tatiana Dilma Fernandes de Oliveira Medeiros & Claudio Pitassi, 2018. "Eco-Innovation in the Corporations Operating in the International Market," Journal of Management and Sustainability, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 8(1), pages 75-92, March.
    10. Huenteler, Joern & Ossenbrink, Jan & Schmidt, Tobias S. & Hoffmann, Volker H., 2016. "How a product’s design hierarchy shapes the evolution of technological knowledge—Evidence from patent-citation networks in wind power," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(6), pages 1195-1217.
    11. Subtil Lacerda, Juliana & van den Bergh, Jeroen C.J.M., 2020. "Effectiveness of an ‘open innovation’ approach in renewable energy: Empirical evidence from a survey on solar and wind power," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    12. Huenteler, Joern & Schmidt, Tobias S. & Ossenbrink, Jan & Hoffmann, Volker H., 2016. "Technology life-cycles in the energy sector — Technological characteristics and the role of deployment for innovation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 102-121.
    13. Elie, Luc & Granier, Caroline & Rigot, Sandra, 2021. "The different types of renewable energy finance: A Bibliometric analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
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    15. Ji Yeon Yang & Taewoo Roh, 2019. "Open for Green Innovation: From the Perspective of Green Process and Green Consumer Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-18, June.

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