Financing Innovation in the UK Environmental and Clean Technology Sector

Investigators

Dr Stuart Parris, Open University
Dr Pelin Demirel, Nottingham University Business School

Summary and aims

This project aims to investigate the role of different types of finance for supporting the innovative activity of small and medium sized enterprises (SME) operating in the environmental sector. The environmental sector is expected to be critical for the future economic development of the UK supporting a new low carbon economy. Entrepreneurial and innovative firms often require significant funding to support their innovative activities in the initial stages; however, little research has examined the relationship between finance and innovation in this sector.

The project will profile activity in the UK, firstly to understand the relationships between finance and innovation in SME firms. Secondly it will provide an important step towards clarifying the underlying innovative activities of a sector that has attracted significant investor interest. Specifically we seek to understand the relationship between the sources of finance and the implications this has on firms innovation strategies. In doing so, we will provide important insights into the most appropriate forms of finance for supporting new innovation in this sector.

Publications

Stuart Parris and Pelin Demirel (2010) Innovation in venture capital backed clean-technology firms in the UK, in Strategic Change

Summary report: UK enterprise, innovation and environment survey (PDF document, 451 KB)

Contact

Dr Stuart Parris, stuart.parris@open.ac.uk