![]() ![]() In an effort to deepen our understanding of makerspaces, this paper asks if makerspaces promote inclusive forms of innovation and economic development. While these studies are valuable for revealing how makers and makerspaces participate within local, regional or global markets, they leave largely unexplored the question of whether or not makerspaces actually foster more inclusive forms of economic development. Much of the research to date has focused on the contributions of makerspaces to traditional local and regional economic development ( Troxler and Wolf, 2017 Van Holm, 2017 Wolf-Powers et al., 2016, 2017). This enthusiasm for making and makerspaces, coupled with the rise of digital platforms that connect makers with designers and/or consumers, suggests that makerspaces have the potential to contribute to more equitable, inclusive and sustainable forms of local economic development.ĭespite this growing interest in makerspaces, we know relatively little about how makerspaces actually contribute to inclusive economic development, whether through providing access to technology and training, supporting entrepreneurship or embedding social inclusion and sustainability goals and practices into their operations. But perhaps the most lauded benefit of the maker economy is its perceived potential to uplift historically marginalized urban communities by providing more inclusive access to advanced design and manufacturing technologies through makerspaces ( NLC, 2016, 2017). Existing small businesses also stand to benefit through association with makers and maker-led businesses that can rapidly prototype new products, shortening the product cycle between R&D and market ( SGA, 2017), and potentially re-shore manufacturing supply chains ( Helper et al., 2020 Lowe and Vinodrai, 2020a). Indeed, the most ardent advocates suggest that makerspaces not only provide foundational and inclusive spaces for acquiring technological literacy and developing skills (National League of Cities (NLC), 2016), but that they form the vanguard of a new industrial revolution ( Anderson, 2012), one centered on a form of small-scale, highly individualized manufacturing embedded in global supply chains and marketplaces.Īdvocates frame makerspaces as critical intermediary institutions in local innovation ecosystems that connect entrepreneurial makers with the advanced technologies, skills development and financial resources necessary for venture creation ( Anderson, 2012 Hatch, 2013, 2018). Driving this enthusiasm is a belief that makers and makerspaces can renew small-scale, locally embedded manufacturing while facilitating access to more affordable, advanced manufacturing technologies like 3D printers, laser cutters and CNC machines ( Davies, 2018 Wolf-Powers et al., 2017). ![]() In other words, the potential of makerspaces, in their current form, to contribute to more inclusive and sustainable forms of local economic and community development is not yet fully realized.īuoyed by growing interest in do-it-yourself (DIY) culture, localism and environmental sustainability, policymakers and urbanists around the world-but especially in advanced economies-have taken interest in the maker economy. Moreover, we find very limited evidence that makerspaces actively seek to be socially inclusive in their membership and programming or encourage environmentally sustainable practices. Our study finds that while makerspaces offer access to technologies and basic skills training, we find limited evidence that makerspaces generate the promised economic or social outcomes so often attributed to them. In an effort to redress these gaps, this paper uses a unique database of makerspaces, complemented with findings from in-depth case studies, to examine the practices of makerspaces in southern Ontario (Canada). Despite their popularity, we know little about how makerspaces actually support entrepreneurship and innovation and even less about how they advance the goals of environmental sustainability and social inclusion, particularly in the Canadian context. The popular discourse on making and makerspaces is laden with optimistic narratives suggesting that makerspaces act as key institutions that support more inclusive and sustainable forms of local economic development.
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