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Innovation in real places : strategies for prosperity in an unforgiving world / by Breznitz, Dan,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Across the world, cities and regions have wasted trillions of dollars on blindly copying the Silicon Valley model of growth creation. We have lived with this system for decades, and the result is clear: a small number of regions and cities at the top of the high-tech industry but many more fighting a losing battle to retain economic dynamism. But, as this books details, there are other models for innovation-based growth that don't rely on a flourishing high-tech industry. It argues that the purveyors of the dominant ideas on innovation have a feeble understanding of the big picture on global production and innovation. They conflate innovation with invention and suffer from techno-fetishism. In their devotion to start-ups, they refuse to admit that the real obstacle to growth for most cities is the overwhelming power of the real hubs, which siphon up vast amounts of talent and money. Communities waste time, money, and energy pursuing this road to nowhere. Instead Breznitz proposes that communities focus on where they fit within the four stages in the global production process. Success lies in understanding the changed structure of the global system of production and then using those insights to enable communities to recognize their own advantages, which in turn allows to them to foster surprising forms of specialized innovation. All localities have certain advantages relative to at least one stage of the global production process, and the trick is in recognizing it"--
Subjects: Community development.; Economic development.; Globalization.; Industrial capacity; Industrial policy.; Technological innovations; Technological innovations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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What we owe the future / by MacAskill, William,1987-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."One of the most stunning achievements of moral philosophy is something we take for granted: moral universalism, or the idea that every human has equal moral worth. In What We Owe the Future, Oxford philosopher William MacAskill demands that we go a step further, arguing that people not only have equal moral worth no matter where or how they live, but also no matter when they live. This idea has implications beyond the obvious (climate change) - including literally making sure that there are people in the future: It's not unusual to hear someone way, "Oh, I could never bring a child into this world." MacAskill argues that the sentiment itself may well be immoral: we have a responsibility not just to consider whether the world of the future will be suitable for supporting humans, but to act to make sure there are humans in it. And while it may seem that the destructive capacity of modern industrial technology means that we ought to eschew it as much as possible, MacAskill argues for optimism in our ability to (eventually) get technology right, for the future's benefit, and ours. Where Hans Rosling's Factfulness and Rutger Bregman's Utopia for Realists gave us reasons for hope and action in the present, What We Owe the Future is a compelling and accessible argument for why solving our problems demands that we worry about the future. And ultimately it provides an answer to the most important question we humans face: can we not just endure, but thrive?"--
Subjects: Altruism.; Civilization, Modern; Future, The.; Human beings; Human beings;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Triple crown : winning Canada's energy future / by Prentice, Jim,author.; Rioux, Jean-Sébastien,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.One of Canada's leading voices on our energy future offers a powerful case for taking back control of our resources. Canada has a world-class resource base and the capacity to become a world leader in the petroleum and other resource-based industries. But as former federal cabinet minister and Alberta premier Jim Prentice argues in this provocative and timely new book, we have lost our way. He outlines how our nation has repeatedly stumbled in its attempts to become a global player in the field, and how our policies and practices have failed to advance Canada's international interests as an energy producer and exporter with a record of sound environmental achievement. He highlights, for example, our stalled efforts to work with the United States to build new pipelines to the Gulf Coast, and the absence of the infrastructure Canada needs to make further inroads into the Asia-Pacific market. He notes how we have even faltered in our attempts to build pipelines across Canada to service our own citizens, and how Canada has also, to date, failed to craft fair and enduring business partnerships with its own indigenous peoples. Ultimately, one of Canada's greatest strengths has become a liability - economically, socially and environmentally. But what will the path forward look like? In Triple Crown, Jim Prentice makes a powerful argument for the inadequacy of current Canadian energy policy and asserts a new and forward-looking vision for converting our nation's vast resources into a secure, prosperous and environmentally responsible future that benefits all Canadians.
Subjects: Energy policy; Energy policy; Energy industries; Energy industries; Power resources; Power resources; Power resources; Petroleum industry and trade;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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