Dan
Breznitz
Dan Breznitz is a professor, Chair of Innovation Studies, and co-director of the Innovation Policy Lab at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, with a cross-appointment in the Department of Political Science. Breznitz is a fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, where he co-founded and co-directs the program on Innovation, Equity, and the Future of Prosperity. His award-winning books include Innovation and the State, The Run of the Red Queen, and The Third Globalization. Breznitz lives in Toronto.
Award History
2021 Winner
Balsillie Prize for Public Policyfor Innovation in Real Places: Strategies for Prosperity in an Unforgiving World
Jury Citation
"A gnawing worry of Canadian public policy pundits, practitioners, and scholars can be summarized in one word: 'innovation.' How can we innovate more? Faster? Do we innovate enough? In his insightful book Innovation in Real Places, Dan Breznitz deftly argues that Canadians often confuse 'innovation' with 'invention.' His research demonstrates that by focusing on the invention side — creating the next new thing — Canadian policy and industry largely miss the major benefits of the innovation train. Breznitz offers advice for leaders at all levels: you don’t have to invent it; you do, however, have to bring it to market in a better way."
—2021 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy Jury (Samantha Nutt, Taki Sarantakis, and Scott Young)
