Determinants of environmental innovation: an empirical analysis on the transformation industry of Minas Gerais

Abstract

The environmental innovation or “eco-innovation” theme has been highlighted in Brazil since the Rio-92 Conference, being widely debated in the contemporary scenario, both at the academic and governmental levels. However, this discussion intensifies from the inclusion of the term innovation in the Brazilian science and technology system from 2011. From this perspective, the objective of the work was to identify possible determinant heterogeneities in relation to the decision of Minas Gerais manufacturing industry firms to carry out conventional and/or environmental innovations. Therefore, a bivariate probit model was used to capture the degree of relevance of each determinant of the adoption of these two types of innovation in the mineira industry. The database used came from the Technological Innovation Survey for the period from 1998 to 2011. As main results, the study points out that environmental regulation, cooperation, government support and environmental management techniques have a more significant impact on the likelihood of firms adopting environmental innovation. It is noteworthy that the result of this study, besides identifying motivating factors for investments in conventional and environmental innovations, can subsidize public policies in order to expand innovative actions and sustainable strategies in the mineira industry.