"Planet Earth was once ruled by many different animals. Lions, bears, and elephants ruled the land. Dolphins, whales, and sharks ruled the sea. Eagles, owls, and vultures ruled the sky. But now, we humans rule everything: the land, the sea, and the sky."
This passage from Unstoppable Us: How Humans Took Over the World by Yuval Noah Harari illustrates a powerful reality: human ingenuity and innovation have reshaped our world. Through groundbreaking ideas, technological advancements, and collective effort, we have built societies that can travel faster than eagles, move goods across oceans in days, and access knowledge with a single click.
But with this power comes responsibility. Innovation has the potential to drive progress, equity, and sustainability, yet it also risks widening inequalities and deepening environmental harm. The key question we must ask is: Are we steering innovation in the right direction?
The Need for a New Innovation Paradigm
Innovation has long been seen as the engine of economic growth, productivity, and competitiveness. However, as the world grapples with pressing challenges—climate change, social fragmentation, and widening inequalities growth alone cannot define progress.
Traditionally, innovation has been measured in GDP growth, patent counts, and technological advancement, often overlooking its broader societal and environmental consequences. But should we not also ask:
- How does innovation impact inequality?
- Does it contribute to or mitigate climate change?
- Does it enhance well-being, or does it deepen social divisions?
To answer these questions, we need to rethink how we study, fund, and govern innovation, shifting towards a model that prioritizes inclusivity and sustainability.
Understanding Innovation Beyond Economic Growth
Early economic models focused on capital accumulation as the key to progress, but by the mid-20th century, economists recognized that technological capabilities were equally crucial in shaping development. Scholars like Joseph Schumpeter highlighted innovation's disruptive power—creating new industries while displacing old ones.
However, innovation is not inherently beneficial. The digital divide, job losses due to automation, and environmental degradation illustrate how technological progress can create unintended harm. These realities call for a new approach—one that carefully assesses who benefits from innovation, who is left behind, and how risks can be mitigated.
A truly inclusive research agenda must explore innovation’s social, environmental, and institutional dimensions, rather than focusing solely on economic indicators. Consider the following:
- Labor Markets: New technologies reshape work, but not always equitably. Women, older workers, and informal labourers are often more vulnerable to displacement.
- Climate Change: Green technologies offer solutions, yet many industries still rely on resource-intensive processes that harm the environment. The challenge is to steer innovation towards sustainability while minimizing economic trade-offs.
- Global Disparities: Innovation is often framed through high-income economies, where R&D drives formal technological breakthroughs. However, in many developing regions, innovation is grassroots-driven, tackling local challenges through frugal, community-led solutions. Recognizing these alternative pathways is crucial for equitable development
Similarly, institutions play a defining role in shaping innovation’s impact. Policies, governance structures, and social norms determine how innovation is funded, adopted, and scaled. Research must explore how institutions can be strengthened to foster inclusive and sustainable innovation rather than exacerbating inequalities.
The global innovation landscape is at a crossroads. While technological breakthroughs continue to drive progress, their societal and environmental implications can no longer be ignored.
Governing Innovation for a Better Future
Rethinking innovation requires interdisciplinary collaboration. Economists, sociologists, environmental scientists, data analysts, and policymakers must work together to create frameworks that capture innovation’s full impact—both positive and negative.
It also demands new methodologies that integrate qualitative insights with quantitative data to provide a more holistic picture of how technology shapes societies.
At UNU-MERIT, we argue that innovation itself is neither inherently good nor bad—it is a tool. Its outcomes depend on how it is governed, funded, and directed. As the world faces multiple crises, we must ensure that innovation serves the broader goal of human progress. This means:
- Moving beyond economic efficiency to measure innovation’s impact on equity and well-being.
- Developing policies that promote inclusive access to innovation—so that its benefits are not concentrated in the hands of a few.
- Ensuring that technological progress aligns with sustainability goals, rather than exacerbating environmental crises.
For a deeper dive into this critical issue, read our latest policy brief, which outlines a research agenda on reorienting innovation towards inclusive and sustainable development.
A Final Reflection
To close, let’s return to another quote from Unstoppable Us:
"We humans are now so powerful that the fate of all other animals depends on us. The only reason lions, dolphins, and eagles still exist is because we allow them to … That’s a lot of power, and it can be used in good ways or bad ways. To be a good human being, you need to understand the power you have and what to do with it."
The same can be said about innovation. We have the power to shape the future—but how we choose to innovate will determine whether that future is equitable, sustainable, and just.
Now is the time to ensure that innovation works for everyone, not just for a select few.
Read the complete Policy Brief here.
