Stream, River, Delta: Induced Innovation in Economic Theory and Environmental Policy

This chapter begins by discussing the ideas surrounding John Hicks's concept of induced innovation and the broadening of that idea by Vernon Ruttan and Yujiro Hayami to a more general theory of technological and institutional change. This is followed by a description of the pivotal environmental technology and policy changes in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The chapter concludes with an interpretation of the current debate over international climate issues, which is considered a major threat to sustainable economic growth other than poverty in low-income countries.