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To Scale, Or Not to Scale – That Is Not the Only Question Seerp Wigboldus Rethinking the Idea and Practice of Scaling Innovations for Development and Progress

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To Scale, Or Not to Scale – That Is Not the Only Question Seerp Wigboldus Rethinking the Idea and Practice of Scaling Innovations for Development and Progress innovations scaling of practice and idea the ethinking development for progress and cale, or not to scale To s R To scale, or not to scale – that is not the only question Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations for – development and progress that is not the only question Seerp Wigboldus Seerp Wigboldus To scale, or not to scale – that is not the only question Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations for development and progress Seerp Wigboldus Thesis committee Promotors Prof. Dr C. Leeuwis Professor of Knowledge, Technology, and Innovation Wageningen University & Research Prof. Dr H. Jochemsen Special Professor Reformational Philosophy Wageningen University & Research Co-promotor Dr L.W.A. Klerkx Associate Professor of Knowledge, Technology and Innovation Group Wageningen University & Research Other members Prof. Dr T. de Cock Bunning, VU University Amsterdam Dr A.R.P.J. Dewulf, Wageningen University & Research Dr G. Hickey, McGill University, Montreal, Canada Prof. Dr J. Hoogland, University of Twente This research was conducted under the auspices of the Wageningen School of Social Sciences To scale, or not to scale – that is not the only question Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations for development and progress Seerp Wigboldus Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of doctor at Wageningen University by the authority of the Rector Magnificus, Prof. Dr A.P.J. Mol, in the presence of the Thesis Committee appointed by the Academic Board to be defended in public on Tuesday 11 September 2018 at 4 p.m. in the Aula Seerp Wigboldus To scale, or not to scale – that is not the only question Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations for development and progress 261 pages PhD thesis, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands (2018) With references, with summary in English ISBN 978-94-6343-290-0 DOI https://doi.org/10.18174/449586 Acknowledgements | i Acknowledgements It would not have been possible for me to write this thesis without the support of, and collaboration with, a number of people. In the following, I express my gratitude to them. I thank the co-authors of the various articles that became chapters in this dissertation: Sander Muilerman, Marc Schut, Jianchu Xu, Zhangfang Yi, and Jun He. Through writing scientific articles, I learned about some clear limitations in my style and focus of writing, and it was such a relief to be able to check things out with co-authors and receive their valuable input and feedback. Specifically, I want to mention Jim Hammond who participated in the research on green rubber in Southwest China. That was a special experience as it gave me the opportunity to return to a country that I have enjoyed greatly in the past (and hope to do so in the future). When living and working in Tibet (China) before, the temptation to gather data for a future PhD was there because of the unique work environment of the Qomolangma National Nature Reserve. I decided at the time not to do so because I wanted to devote my time entirely to the work in which I was then involved. To be able to now include a study on a topic in China feels like connecting a bit back to that very special time of living in Tibet (China) with my wife and son. My two supervisors, Cees Leeuwis and Henk Jochemsen, have helped sharpen the focus of this thesis, which, especially at the beginning, was very necessary. Though we did not have interactions very often, they were always pleasant and motivating. Cees, thank you for involving me in the CGIAR Research Program on Integrated Systems for the Humid Tropics, which created opportunities that I otherwise would not have had. This was critical for being able to write the thesis as it stands today. I also thank my co-promotor, Laurens Klerkx, who tried to guide me in the art of scientific writing. I realise that I was a stubborn student, and I thank you for your patience in relation to, and your candour about, the quality of draft versions of some of the chapters. Catherine O’Dea improved the language and presentation of most of the chapters, which greatly enhanced the readability of the thesis. Annette Dijkstra and Inge Ruisch helped organise meetings with Cees and Henk and provided administrative support in a very pleasant way. I also thank the (in the meantime phased-out) CGIAR research program on Integrated Systems for the Humid Tropics for providing research opportunities and support. I thank my employer, Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation (CDI), for allowing me to temporarily reduce contract hours to enable me to work on this thesis in my spare time, for covering more than two dozen contract days to work on it over the past five years, and for allowing me to use facilities. I have enjoyed the pleasant work relationships with so many colleagues at CDI that I cannot begin to make a list of names as it would take up too much space and I would risk forgetting someone. Thank you all for the stimulating environment and friendships! ii | Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations Friends and family often asked, “how is the PhD work going?” More than once I regretted ever mentioning that I had started that work, not being sure I would be able to finish it. But thank you for your sincere expressions of interest and for being just that: friends and family. It means very much to me! My wife, Maaike, was not just supportive, but also helped me remain aware that this work should not become too important in terms of time and energy spent on it. After all, life is about more than work ambitions, and scientific knowledge needs to be complemented with other ways of knowing if we are to experience and understand the purpose of the life that we have been given in all its fullness. Also, by agreeing to reduced family income because of reduced contract hours at CDI, you put into practice the ‘economics of enough’, which is the way forward for society. My son, Jesse, made me aware of serious problems in generally held beliefs about history, pointing to the need for careful scrutiny of presented cases as regards their accuracy and reliability. Thank you for challenging me to look for truth and not for politically correct or merely convenient perspectives! Finally, the literature that I read while working on this thesis left me with a deep sense of both appreciation for well-articulated and well-presented arguments, and modesty because I realise that this thesis is just one contribution in a vast body of literature on innovation, scaling, and associated ideas and ideologies in society. Wageningen, July 2018, Seerp Wigboldus Table of contents | iii Table of contents page Acknowledgements i Table of contents iii Chapter 1: Introduction 1 1.1 General introduction 3 1.2 This thesis 3 1.3 Historical background 8 1.4 Conceptual background 11 1.4.1 The concept of scale 12 1.4.2 The concept of scaling 15 1.4.3 Scaling innovations for development and progress 19 1.5 Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations for development 22 and progress 1.5.1 Motivation: core concerns and questions 23 1.5.2 Purpose: enriching perspectives and considering alternatives 27 approaches 1.6 Research focus and methodology 29 1.6.1 Research focus 30 1.6.2 Research methodology 32 1.6.3 Outline of thesis 34 Chapter 2: Scaling under scrutiny. A critical assessment of the idea of scaling 35 innovations for development and progress 2.1 Introduction 37 2.2 Tracing the origins of scaling as concept and process 39 2.2.1 Scaling in history 39 2.2.2 Societal trends as scaling processes 42 2.2.3 Sweet and sour fruits of impact at scale 45 2.3 Inherent implications of scaling innovations 47 2.3.1 The technology orientation 47 2.3.2 The model orientation 51 2.3.3 Associated distortions 54 2.4 On narratives supporting ambitions to scale innovations 59 2.4.1 From rationale to rhetoric 59 2.4.2 From paradigm to paradox 61 2.4.3 From idea to ideology 64 2.5 Rethinking scaling ambitions 66 2.5.1 Resisting scaling bluff 66 2.5.2 Rebalancing pro-scaling bias 67 2.5.3 Reconsidering scaling belief 69 2.6 From critique to counsel 70 2.6.1 Caring for what really matters at scale 71 2.6.2 Constructing an ethics of scaling innovations 73 2.6.3 Cultivating responsible innovation and scaling 74 2.7 Conclusions 79 iv | Rethinking the idea and practice of scaling innovations Chapter 3: Systemic perspectives on scaling agricultural innovations. A 88 review 3.1 Introduction 83 3.2 Towards a framework for systemic analysis of scaling processes 86 3.2.1 Building on the multi-level perspective on socio-technical transitions 86 3.2.2 Complementing the multi-level perspective with the theory of 89 aspects 3.2.3 PROMIS as an integrative analytical framework 93 3.3 Enriching perspectives on scaling processes by applying the PROMIS 96 framework 3.3.1 Analysing the regime configuration in which scaling takes place 96 3.3.2 Strategic analysis of anticipated scaling dynamics 99 3.3.3 Understanding different stakeholders’ roles in scaling 100 3.3.4 Supporting stakeholders in future-oriented analysis of scaling 101 3.4 Using the PROMIS framework as an integrative tool in research: early 103 experiences 3.5 Conclusion: current contribution of PROMIS and next steps 105 Chapter 4: Scaling green rubber cultivation in Southwest China - An 109 integrative analysis of stakeholder perspectives 4.1 Introduction: the need to ‘green’ rubber cultivation 111 4.2 Research methodology: applying the Practice-Oriented Multilevel 113 perspective on Innovation and Scaling 4.3
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