Austria 2025 – Environmental Innovations in Austria. Performance and Success Factors

Over the past decades, the concept of sustainable development has been largely internalised by politics and society and it has been increasingly recognised that current production and consumption patterns may not be viable for the future. At the international level, strategies for environmentally sustainable growth are discussed ("OECD Green Growth Strategy", "Europe 2020 Strategy"), highlighting the relevance of environmental innovations, i.e., the development of environmental and resource-saving technologies, for sustainable development. As is shown by an ex-post analysis of the environmental innovation performance of Austrian businesses based on OECD patent data, the dynamics of the research output (measured in patents) has decreased in Austria in recent years and a pronounced specialisation in environmental technologies in the innovation system can no longer be observed. A comparison with the policy framework in the EU's innovation leader countries as well as the findings of an expert survey provide guidance for a successful support of environmental innovations. A stable environmental and energy policy framework with ambitious goals is essential since it increases demand for environmental technologies and thus triggers innovation activities.