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Grand missions of agricultural innovation

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  • Wright, Brian D.

Abstract

This paper discusses three related examples of mission-oriented agricultural institutional innovations associated with substantial crop yield increases in the 20th century. It begins with the implementation of the United States Land-Grant System and then discusses in turn the planning and implementation of the two grand missions that led successively to the yield increases in wheat and rice that heralded the onset of the “Green Revolution.” It notes the remarkable role of the Rockefeller Foundation in identifying these two missions, and selecting personnel developed within the land-grant system to execute them with remarkable effectiveness.

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  • Wright, Brian D., 2012. "Grand missions of agricultural innovation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(10), pages 1716-1728.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:respol:v:41:y:2012:i:10:p:1716-1728
    DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2012.04.021
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    2. Michael J. Andrews, 2020. "Local Effects of Land Grant Colleges on Agricultural Innovation and Output," NBER Chapters, in: Economics of Research and Innovation in Agriculture, pages 139-175, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Ciarli, Tommaso & Ràfols, Ismael, 2019. "The relation between research priorities and societal demands: The case of rice," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 949-967.
    4. Sonia E. Monroy & Hernando Diaz, 2018. "Time series-based bibliometric analysis of the dynamics of scientific production," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 115(3), pages 1139-1159, June.
    5. Mariana Mazzucato, 2015. "From Market Fixing to Market-Creating: A New Framework for Economic Policy," SPRU Working Paper Series 2015-25, SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex Business School.
    6. Lídia Cabral & Poonam Pandey & Xiuli Xu, 2022. "Epic narratives of the Green Revolution in Brazil, China, and India," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(1), pages 249-267, March.
    7. Lídia Cabral, 2021. "Embrapa and the construction of scientific heritage in Brazilian agriculture: Sowing memory," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 39(5), pages 789-810, September.
    8. Federico Ciliberto & GianCarlo Moschini & Edward D. Perry, 2019. "Valuing product innovation: genetically engineered varieties in US corn and soybeans," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 50(3), pages 615-644, September.
    9. Mariana Mazzucato, 2018. "Mission-oriented innovation policies: challenges and opportunities," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 27(5), pages 803-815.
    10. Mariana Mazzucato & Douglas K Robinson, 2016. "Lost in space? NASA and the changing publicprivate eco-system in space," SPRU Working Paper Series 2016-20, SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex Business School.
    11. Ester Ferrari & Luigi Bollani & Mario Coccia & Eugenio Cavallo, 2013. "Technological Innovations in Agricultural Tractors: Adopters’ behaviour towards new technological trajectories and future directions," CERIS Working Paper 201305, CNR-IRCrES Research Institute on Sustainable Economic Growth - Torino (TO) ITALY - former Institute for Economic Research on Firms and Growth - Moncalieri (TO) ITALY.
    12. Mowery, David C., 2012. "Defense-related R&D as a model for “Grand Challenges” technology policies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(10), pages 1703-1715.
    13. Barbara Biasi & David Deming & Petra Moser, 2020. "Education and Innovation," NBER Chapters, in: The Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Economic Growth, pages 537-551, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Bhaven N. Sampat, 2020. "Comment on "Local Effects of Land Grant Colleges on Agricultural Innovation and Output"," NBER Chapters, in: Economics of Research and Innovation in Agriculture, pages 175-178, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Annosi, Maria Carmela & Ráez, Rosa María Oliva & Appio, Francesco Paolo & Del Giudice, Teresa, 2022. "An integrative review of innovations in the agricultural sector: The roles of agency, structure, and their dynamic interplay," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    16. Leach, Melissa & Nisbett, Nicholas & Cabral, Lídia & Harris, Jody & Hossain, Naomi & Thompson, John, 2020. "Food politics and development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    17. Dennis Wichelns, 2015. "Achieving Water and Food Security in 2050: Outlook, Policies, and Investments," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-33, April.
    18. Chemeris, Anna & Liu, Yong & Ker, Alan P., 2022. "Insurance subsidies, climate change, and innovation: Implications for crop yield resiliency," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    19. Dominique Foray, 2019. "On sector-non-neutral innovation policy: towards new design principles," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 29(5), pages 1379-1397, November.
    20. Mariana Mazzucato & Caetano C.R. Penna, 2016. "Beyond market failures: the market creating and shaping roles of state investment banks," Journal of Economic Policy Reform, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 305-326, October.
    21. Veldhuizen, Caroline, 2020. "Smart Specialisation as a transition management framework: Driving sustainability-focused regional innovation policy?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(6).
    22. Batbaatar, Maral & Sandström, Christian & P Larsson, Johan & Wennberg, Karl, 2023. "The State of the Entrepreneurial State: Empirical Evidence of Mission-Led Innovation Projects around the Globe," Ratio Working Papers 368, The Ratio Institute.
    23. Cavallo, Eugenio & Ferrari, Ester & Bollani, Luigi & Coccia, Mario, 2014. "Attitudes and behaviour of adopters of technological innovations in agricultural tractors: A case study in Italian agricultural system," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 44-54.
    24. Dominique Foray, 2022. "The Economics of Incomplete Plan -on Conditions, Procedures and Design of Future Mission- Oriented Innovation Policies," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 243(4), pages 123-146, December.
    25. Klerkx, Laurens & Begemann, Stephanie, 2020. "Supporting food systems transformation: The what, why, who, where and how of mission-oriented agricultural innovation systems," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).

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