Responsible innovation and stakeholder management in infrastructures: The Nansha Port Railway Project

This paper describes and specifies a new and ambitious approach for dealing with value conflicts in infrastructure projects: Responsible Innovation (RI). Stakeholder involvement and management will be put forward as essential in addressing and preventing value conflicts, which might otherwise arise in relation to large technological projects. The Nansha Port Railway Project, which provides Guangzhou Port with a vital link to its hinterland, is used as a case to explain and detail how RI can be used in designing, developing and managing port infrastructure projects in the context of Chinese society. It will be argued that RI will lead to better projects, especially in terms of policy and decision-making, maximizing the support base and reducing the likelihood of public resistance, because the interests and values of all stakeholders are considered during the whole innovation process.