ABSTRACT
Historically, universities and institutions of higher learning have gone through three academic revolutions, namely, teaching, research and innovation. Universities and higher educational institutions (HEIs) in the last two decades have come to occupy an important part in the national innovation systems (NIS), which is a complex of “all important economic, social, political, organizational, institutional and other factors that influence the development, diffusion and use of innovations”. The rise of Asia in the global knowledge-based economy from the mid-1990s is closely associated with the rise of knowledge institutions of higher learning and scientific research output. Every Asia-Pacific country embraced and introduced policies relating to innovation in varying forms. Different national innovation systems in the Asia-Pacific region have given rise to varying roles of universities. While universities in Southeast Asian countries and India continue to play a traditional role of teaching and generating human capital, there are countries such as Singapore, China and Japan wherein universities are being transformed into entrepreneurial universities. Science and innovation policies in these countries have orchestrated the goal direction of universities as frontiers of innovation. The chapter focuses on some select Asian experiences. In doing so, the chapter brings into focus the emerging innovation landscapes across the region.
