Creative Globalization

2Scaling Up

2.1. As societies choose

The most common situation is to have a local innovation whose area of distribution needs to be expanded. The various approaches for doing this will be examined here, with an aim for maximum potential, i.e. global expansion.

David Edgerton’s work progresses with the following conclusion based on historical analysis of innovations; “the greater part of change takes place through transfer from one location to another” [EDG 13, p. 274]. A situation of “techno-globalism” is rather exceptional, with respect to “techno-nationalist” demands, e.g. in attributing the invention of the assembly line to the United States; they are not generally recognized by historic criticism. These are quite often rather old techniques that contribute the most significant increase to well-being. The number of major therapies invented in the period 2000–2015 is average for the previous periods; however, life expectancy has increased more for people all over the planet than in any other period in human history: it is therefore more widespread uses of known therapies that give rise to these good results.

Let us give two examples mentioned by Edgerton, indicating the long period in which major innovations were involved: the “taxi-bike” and the naval shell [EDG 13]. Living in Nicaragua in 2010, he saw the development of taxi-bikes, popularized by Colombian soap operas. The local name given to this means of transport is that of one of the heroes from these television series ...