COMMUNITECH AND THE DYNAMICS OF THE INNOVATION COMMONS WITHIN A COLLABORATIVE SPACE

Abstract

This article analyzes the dynamics of innovation that emerge and develop in certain emblematic collaborative spaces that are at the origin of the formation of true innovation ecosystems. The study focuses on the case of the Communitech Hub in Waterloo, Ontario, which is at the origin of the formation of a successful entrepreneurial ecosystem. The results highlight some common features of these collaborative spaces, namely: the innovation dynamics in these spaces are orchestrated by bottom-up initiatives led by informal groups of individuals (“commoners”) who articulate a set of “innovation commons” to develop their collaborative innovation project. According to our observations, the dynamics of innovation in collaborative spaces result from the following sequence of commons: 1) social commons, 2) symbolic commons, and 3) knowledge commons. First, commoners emerge as an active group of a professional community and contribute to the formation and maintenance of a social commons based on the openness and cross-fertilization of a network of professionals; second, commoners become involved as the core of an “epistemic community” that develops a shared vision and creates a collaborative space to develop its innovation goal; once the collaborative space is functioning, commoners form different communities to share, maintain, and enrich a set of “knowledge commons”. Each of these commons corresponds to a governance mechanism for collective action on a specific common resource that is a key determinant of the innovative project.