Why nurturing innovative minds is important to the economy

Why nurturing innovative minds is important to the economy

In the mid-1950s, Moses Abramovitz of Stanford University published a paper in which he had measured the growth in output of the American economy from 1870 to 1950. What Abromovitz had discovered was that the growth in economic input i.e. labour and capital accounted for only 15% of growth in output and concluded that the factor responsible for the residual 85% is creativity and innovation.

Regardless of economic observations, it is apparent that every piece of technology which has made people’s lives easier and more productive is the direct outcome of the innovative properties of creative minds. Yet in order to reap their maximum benefits, they need to be trained and nurtured. That is why in most of the developed world, there is much emphasis on innovative approaches throughout the schooling system and academia. Every dollar invested in nurturing and growing the innovative faculties of the population will reward the economy with a more productive and innovative workforce capable of discovering and rendering sustainable solutions for virtually every challenge that the economy is facing.

As the world moves rapidly towards economic prosperity and depletion of natural resources, the need for more innovation can be sensed in every segment of the economy. With the rise in global income, there will be a massive increase in the demand for various goods and services which can be produced only through innovative thinking and creative solutions. Otherwise every attempt to hold up economic standards on a global scale is doomed to fail.

Behrouz Rahimi