The Seventeenth Globelics Conference, held in Heredia, Costa Rica, in October 2021, took place at a time when governments, universities, and research institutions were rethinking the role of innovation in addressing global environmental and social challenges. Under the theme “Innovation Systems and Sustainable Development: New Challenges for Research, Policy and Practice,” the conference shifted the discussion beyond economic competitiveness, emphasizing instead how innovation systems can contribute to more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive societies. Hosting the event in Costa Rica, a country internationally recognized for its environmental leadership, provided an appropriate setting for examining the relationship between innovation, sustainability, and development.
The conference was organized by the Centro Internacional de Política Económica para el Desarrollo Sostenible (CINPE) at the National University of Costa Rica (Universidad Nacional – UNA). Coordination of the event was led by Jeffrey Orozco, whose work as General Coordinator guided both the academic programme and institutional collaboration, while Johnny Núñez Zúñiga directed communication and outreach activities. They were supported by the broader CINPE-UNA academic team, whose efforts ensured that researchers, policymakers, and students from different regions could actively participate in the discussions. Their organization reflected CINPE’s long-standing commitment to connecting scientific research with public policy and sustainable development.
Rather than concentrating on a single dimension of innovation, the conference approached sustainability from multiple perspectives. Participants debated how innovation systems should respond to climate change, persistent inequality, technological disruption, and the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The discussions consistently emphasized that economic growth alone is insufficient unless accompanied by stronger institutions, environmental responsibility, and policies capable of improving social wellbeing.
This perspective became particularly evident in the keynote programme. K. J. Joseph, from the Centre for Studies in Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (India), examined how innovation policy can be aligned with sustainable development objectives and argued that mission-oriented strategies are increasingly necessary to address complex global challenges. Gabriela Dutrénit, of the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, focused on the relationship between innovation and inequality in Latin America, highlighting the importance of designing science, technology, and innovation policies that generate wider social benefits rather than concentrating opportunities in a limited number of sectors or regions.
Questions concerning inclusion and social justice were further developed by Judith Sutz of the University of the Republic (Uruguay). Drawing on decades of research in Latin America, she discussed how innovation systems can become more responsive to societal needs by strengthening interactions between scientific institutions and vulnerable communities. Complementing these regional perspectives, Keun Lee of Seoul National University reflected on technological capability building and industrial upgrading, demonstrating how the experiences of East Asian economies continue to provide valuable lessons for countries pursuing structural transformation through innovation.
Instead of separating environmental concerns from industrial development, many of the parallel sessions examined the ways in which both objectives can reinforce one another. Contributions explored topics such as green innovation, agricultural transformation, industrial upgrading, university–industry collaboration, entrepreneurship, and science, technology and innovation policy, while several papers analyzed Costa Rica’s own experience in integrating sustainability into national development strategies. These discussions illustrated that successful innovation systems increasingly depend on balancing economic performance with environmental stewardship and social inclusion.
Another defining characteristic of the conference was its strong Latin American presence. Researchers from across the region presented comparative studies on innovation policy, productive development, and institutional change, allowing Central American experiences to be examined alongside those of South America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. This exchange reinforced the value of South–South cooperation while expanding opportunities for collaborative research across regions facing similar development challenges.
More broadly, the Heredia meeting demonstrated how the Globelics network continues to adapt its research agenda to emerging global priorities. Sustainability was treated not as an additional topic within innovation studies but as an organizing principle that cuts across technological change, industrial policy, education, governance, and social development. By bringing these dimensions together, the Seventeenth Globelics Conference strengthened the dialogue between academic research and policy practice, while positioning Costa Rica as an important reference point for discussions on innovation-driven sustainable development within the Global South.