The feasibility and desirability of endless economic growth is increasingly being questioned by scholars and activists. While envisioning alternative economic models is key to assure the sustainability and wellbeing of present and future generations, few studies have analysed what might be the role of innovation in a post-growth era. Innovating has become the imperative for the survival and expansion of any form of organization. But this ‘innovate or die mania’ underpins assumptions – such as technological determinism and productivism – that neglect the socially constructed character of technological development, its politics and its capacity to enable just and equitable societies but also dystopian technocratic futures. This entry posits that untangling innovation from growth is key to imagining a post-growth era. If growth is going to be unsustainable, we need new narratives for innovation.
Pansera, M., Lloveras, J., & Fressoli, M. (2025). "61: Innovation beyond growth". In Elgar Encyclopedia of Innovation Management. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing. Retrieved May 19, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035306459.00071 (lien externe)