Industrial Ecology and Spaces of Innovation

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THE FUTURE OF MANUFACTURING IN EUROPE 2015-2020
THE CHALLENGE FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Governance, Social Attitudes and Politics

Ian Miles, Matthias Weber & Kieron Flanagan

Abstract

This paper was produced in the context of a project on the Future of Manufacturing in Europe (FUTMAN), in which the issues of transformation in manufacturing systems were explored from a variety of perspectives, and scenarios developed to examine possible directions and drivers of change. The main theme of the paper is the need to take a multidimensional look at governance issues as part of the FUTMAN process. It begins with some clarification of terminology first of governance itself, and then examines the meaning of the "knowledge-based economy" and some of the implications that the various main aspects of this phenomenon (service economy, information society, learning organisations, etc) have for governance. The next step is to consider some more challenging issues concerned with shifts in social values (risk society, value structures, etc.) - these are rarely included within the "knowledge economy" literature, but are part and parcel of the complex of changes influencing governance and the future of manufacturing, as we seek to demonstrate. The concluding sections of the paper seek to draw these threads together, in terms of policy and research issues that are raised. It is hoped that the overview provided will be helpful for those studying and seeking to effect more sustainable industrial ecologies, as well as the specific concerns of FUTMAN.

(Download paper - 281Kb pdf format)

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