Review
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It takes one of the leading lights on innovationCalestous Jumato truly understand the forces that se it.
Just as technologic change is reaching peak velocity, this extraordinary work provides a systematic, scholarly, and
surgical dissection of what can hold us back. (Eric Topol, author of The Patient Will See You Now)
An inful book that addresses one of the paradoxes of our time, namely why generations that have benefited so much
from innovation are so resistant to it. Drawing on a fascinating diversity of historical examplescoffee, electricity,
refrigeration, farm mechanization, genetic modificationProfessor Juma discusses how innovation occurs, the role of
experts and why skepticism and confusion are often inevitable. A must-read for everyone involved in technology
development and policy. (Louise O. Fresco, President of Wageningen University and Research Centre, The Netherlands)
An outstanding treatise on how new technologies are created and why they are so often not initially accepted by society.
Innovation and Its Enemies is filled with wonderful stories that go through innovations ranging from cell phones to
coffee to the light bulb. I loved reading it. (Robert Langer, David H. Koch Institute Professor, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology)
Calestous Jumas book provides a very enjoyable in into the attitudes of society and individuals to innovation over
the centuries. Its highly accessible style provides the reader with great historical nuggets arising from the
introduction of coffee and printing through to reactions invoked when margarine and transgenic crops were launched. The
conclusions are supported by amazing facts and detailsI didnt want to put the book down because there were so many
instances when I thought I knew the full story only to find new twists and turns. (Sir Christopher Snowden, President
and Vice-Chancellor, University of Southampton)
We all know how difficult it can be to accept truly revolutionary innovations. Professor Juma illustrates the
difficulties faced by the innovators with a few case histories and provides some guidelines for avoiding many of the
difficulties. One strong lesson is that engaging with the consumers, usually the general public, at an early stage is a
very good idea. Another clear lesson is that different stakeholders react very differently to innovation, especially
when it seems it might seriously disrupt existing businesses or traditional social structures. A must read for anyone
who wishes to engage in such disruption themselves. (Richard J. Roberts, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine, and Chief Scientific Officer, New England Biolabs)
We live among so many innovations that we tend to forget that before their acceptance, there tends to be resistance
among the public, or by people whose livelihoods are threatened by them. Coffee, printing and refrigeration are among
the innovations which have become so widespread that we may be amazed to read about their troubled histories. Other
newer innovations, including genetic modification of s and animals are still in the midst of public scrutiny.
Professor Jumas book is a very well-researched account of innovation and its enemies, not to be missed by scholars and
the public, both for historical perspectives and readiness for future innovations. (Professor Yongyuth Yuthavong, Former
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Technology, Thailand)
Knowledge is a continuum; thus Mendelian genetics has now given way to molecular genetics. Innovation and Its Enemies
gives an excellent account of the continuity of innovation and the impediments faced in getting new ideas accepted. The
author has given excellent examples of the conflict between the old and the new in scientific progress. A recent example
is genetic modification. This book is a timely one since scientific knowledge is progressing at such a rate that often
the new technologies are viewed with suspicion. We owe a deep debt of gratitude to Dr. Calestous Juma for his labor of
love for the progress of human wellbeing through scientific innovations. (M S Swaminathan, Founder Chairman, M S
Swaminathan Research Foundation)
This is a good read and an invaluable reference work for those working on new technologies, especially those needed to
meet the grand challenges of the 21st century. Calestous Jumas detailed analysis of how innovations have been accepted
or resisted is complete and fascinating. Many view resistance to advances such as GM foods and mobile phones as a modern
phenomenon related to recent advances in science. Calestous explains that innovations have in fact been resisted for
centuries but goes on to explain how this resistance can, and has been, overcome. (Lord Alec Broers, British House of
Lords and Former Vice Chancellor of Cambridge University)
Drawing from an inful study of over 600 years of technological history, Innovation and Its Enemies is an excellent
analysis of forces that se new innovative products and services like incumbent industries, fear of change and risk,
and socioeconomic uncertainties resulting from the perception of benefiting only a few and costing the majority. A must
read for entrepreneurs, policy framers and academicians. (N. R. Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys)
This stimulating history of innovation looks beyond just the obvious successes and failures. Between the high and lows
lies a large territory where adoption might go either way and Jumas in is to see how the appropriate deployment of
political capital and a deeper understanding of how the average citizen can confuse hazard and risk can make crucial
differences to outcomes. Scientific and political leaders need this book. (Ian Blatchford, Director and Chief Executive
of the Science Museum Group)
About the Author
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Calestous Juma, a national of Kenya, is an internationally-recognized authority on the role of science,
technology and innovation in economic development. He is Professor of the Practice of International Development and
Director of the Science, Technology, and Globalization Project at Harvard Kennedy School. He directs the Agricultural
Innovation in Africa Project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and serves as Faculty Chair of Harvard's
Innovation for Economic Development executive program. Juma is a former Executive Secretary of the UN Convention on
Biological Diversity and Founding Director of the African Centre for Technology Studies in Nairobi. He was Chancellor of
the University of Guyana and has been elected to several scientific academies including the Royal Society of London, the
US National Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World, the UK Royal Academy of Engineering
and the African Academy of Sciences.