About Nesta

Nesta is an innovation foundation. For us, innovation means turning bold ideas into reality and changing lives for the better. We use our expertise, skills and funding in areas where there are big challenges facing society.

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Kirsten Bound

Executive Director of Research, Analysis and Policy

Kirsten was an Executive Director at Nesta and led Nesta’s Research, Analysis and Policy team.

The team does leading-edge research on innovation and innovation policy and runs initiatives to help people apply the knowledge generated. We are recognised for our expertise in a range of areas, including the analysis of the creative economy, the measurement of innovation, mapping innovation using novel data sources, experimental approaches to innovation policy, social innovation, and the analysis of new global trends in innovation from frugal innovation to seed accelerator programmes and digital startups.

Kirsten was previously Director of International at Nesta, where she built a research team examining new global trends and practices in innovation, and grew Nesta’s global partnerships and programmes. She joined Nesta in 2009 as Lead Policy Advisor for Innovation Systems.

Kirsten has published widely on innovation policy and new trends in global innovation. She has designed a range of programmes and projects that aim to transform the ability of governments to support innovation for growth and wellbeing.

Prior to Nesta, Kirsten worked for Tony Blair's Africa Governance Initiative in Rwanda, capacity building in central government and advising the Rwandan Prime Minister on a new Policy Delivery Unit.

She also worked as a Consultant on Investment Climate Reform for the World Bank's International Finance Corporation, focusing on inward investment promotion and private sector development.

Before that, Kirsten spent five years at Demos, a leading public policy think tank, where she specialized in innovation in emerging economies and participatory democracy.

Kirsten's publications include:

Bound, K, ‘Innovating Together? The Age of Innovation Diplomacy’ in Cornell University, INSEAD, and WIPO (2016): The Global Innovation Index 2016: Winning with Global Innovation, WIPO, Geneva

Ramalingam, B and Bound, K, (2016) Innovation in International Development, Nesta, London

Glennie, A and Bound, K (2016) How Innovation Agencies Work: International lessons to inspire and inform national strategies, Nesta, London

Gabriel, M Engasser, F and Bound, K (2016) Good Incubation in India: strategies for supporting social innovations in challenging contexts, Nesta, London

Bound, K and Saunders, T (2015) The Innovation Policy Toolkit: An introduction to supporting innovation and international collaboration for policy practitioners, www.nesta.org.uk

Bound, K, Saunders, T and Wilsdon, J,(2013) China’s Absorptive State: Research, Innovation and the Prospects for UK-China Collaboration, Nesta, London (republished in Chinese in 2014)

Bound, K and Thornton, I (2012) Our Frugal Future: Lessons from India’s Innovation System, Nesta, London

Miller, P Bound K (2011) The Startup Factories: the rise of accelerator programmes to support new technology ventures, Nesta, London

Bound, K, Puttick, R (2010) Buying Power: Is the Small Business Research Initiative for R&D driving innovation in the UK? Nesta, London

Bound, K. (2008) Brazil: the Natural Knowledge Economy: Demos, London; Published in Portuguese as Brasil: O economia de conoscimento natural: CGEE, Brasilia

Skidmore, P. Bound, K. (2008) The Everyday Democracy Index, Demos, London

Bound, K. (2007) India: the uneven innovator, Demos, London