Search Results (977)

In sociotechnical transitions, landscape disruptions, such as climate change, exert pressure on incumbent regimes and can trigger the emergence of niche innovations. Renewable energy communities represent one such innovation, increasingly central to European energy policy. This paper applies a critical realist method to examine the energy community niche in Portugal, drawing on a content analysis of the scientific literature and recent Horizon Europe research projects involving Portuguese actors. The analysis reveals three distinct research pathways structuring knowledge production in this niche—technology-driven, socio-governance-oriented, and infrastructure-focused. It also reveals a systemic R&D bias: incumbent actors occupy dual positions—simultaneously at the regime level and within the niche—playing central roles in learning and network formation while exhibiting limited capacity to translate innovation into institutional change and large-scale diffusion. Building on these critical realist findings, we then apply the Strategic Niche Management framework as an evaluative lens, revealing structural misalignments between components of the sociotechnical system. Together, these two analytical steps offer a novel reading of the Portuguese energy community niche, contributing to the theoretical debate on incumbent roles in transition dynamics and identifying concrete shortcomings for future R&D agenda-setting. Full article

Physical manufacturing and research infrastructures are essential for advanced innovation but often remain inaccessible to SMEs, start-ups, and research institutions that cannot justify ownership of capital-intensive assets. This study examines whether platform-mediated infrastructure sharing can function as a sustainable open-innovation mechanism in advanced manufacturing. Using the SCIP/SYNPRO platform developed in the SYNERGY and IDEATION projects, an exploratory case-study design combines descriptive analysis of a registry of 290 infrastructure items across 11 countries with qualitative analysis of 23 documented access requests, interaction records, and pilot reports. The results show that the Provider–Taker model facilitates observable access-enabling interactions, including infrastructure publication, request submission, provider–taker communication, negotiation, and selected documented use, although it does not measure population-wide access outcomes. Sharing potential is uneven: modular and emerging technologies, especially VR/AR infrastructures, attract higher request intensity than production-integrated assets. Users and providers favour negotiated access, flexible pricing, operator support, and contractual clarification rather than standardised rental models. Qualitative evidence shows that value is created through access to otherwise unavailable equipment, postponed investment, experimentation, technology familiarisation, student training, capability development, and new inter-organisational research links. The findings indicate that infrastructure sharing can support more resource-efficient innovation but depends on discoverability, governance, trust, and support mechanisms to scale. Full article

Against the backdrop of the ongoing advancement of the “dual carbon” goals and the carbon emission trading system, green innovation in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises faces multiple practical constraints, including financing constraints, technological commercialization risk, and market recognition costs. To examine the mechanism through which government regulation affects firms’ green innovation behavior, this study develops a four-party evolutionary game model involving government, small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises, consumers, and investment institutions, and analyzes the strategic interactions and dynamic evolution of these actors. The results show that regulatory intensity, consumer green preference, and financial support from investment institutions all exert significant effects on green innovation decisions in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises. Whether firms choose substantive green innovation depends primarily on such key factors as financing uncertainty, technological commercialization risk, the intensity of government penalties, and the level of policy incentives. Further stability analysis and numerical simulations indicate that stronger administrative penalties significantly increase the likelihood that firms adopt substantive green innovation and also promote green consumption among consumers. This effect becomes more pronounced when financing uncertainty declines. At the same time, stronger policy incentives for green investment enhance the willingness of investment institutions to participate in green projects, and this effect is further reinforced when technological commercialization risk is reduced. The findings suggest that green innovation in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises is characterized by strong multi-actor interdependence. Its evolutionary outcome is shaped not only by regulatory pressure, but also by green financial support, the conditions for technological commercialization, and market demand. Accordingly, sustained green innovation in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises requires coordinated efforts to improve regulatory arrangements, strengthen green finance support systems, reduce the cost of technological commercialization, and cultivate green consumer markets. Full article

The transition toward a sustainable bioeconomy is increasingly recognised as a key pathway for resource efficiency and climate resilience in emerging economies. However, system-level analyses integrating biomass flows, governance structures, and actor dynamics remain limited, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study develops a systems-oriented analytical framework combining material flow assessment, stakeholder mapping, governance assessment, and innovation systems analysis to evaluate the structure, performance, and circularity of biomass systems in Ghana. The analysis focuses on six major biomass sectors: cocoa, cassava, maize, plantain, oil palm, and shea. The results show that Ghana generates substantial biomass resources, yet significant inefficiencies persist, with major residue streams such as cocoa pod husks (~9 million tonnes (Mt) annually) and cassava peels (2.6–3.8 million tonnes annually) remaining largely underutilised. Across sectors, residue utilisation rates remain low, while biomass leakage is driven by fragmented governance, weak coordination among actors, spatially dispersed production systems, and limited processing and technological capacity. Compared with more integrated biomass-based economies, Ghana remains at an early stage of circular transition, despite considerable potential for value addition and resource recovery. The study contributes a transferable systems-based analytical framework for diagnosing circularity gaps and system inefficiencies in data-constrained bioeconomy contexts. Strengthening institutional coordination, decentralised processing infrastructure, and innovation systems is identified as critical for advancing a more circular and inclusive bioeconomy in Ghana. Full article

In the context of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, “non-discriminatory access” is a fundamental principle that ensures equal and fair access to public charging facilities for users, electricity suppliers, and service providers. The overarching goals of non-discriminatory access are to promote competition in the electric mobility market, improve user-friendliness and acceptance of electric vehicles, and serve as a key enabler for the successful transition to electric mobility. Emerging digital and technological innovations, including smart load management and interoperable billing platforms, are reshaping charging practices. In this context, inter-organisational EVCI sharing is gaining relevance as a means to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and mitigate disparities in infrastructure availability. While numerous actor-specific challenges and opportunities are examined within the framework of the FAMOUS project, this article develops a matrix based on qualitative interviews, a requirements analysis, and a semi-systematic literature review of the term “non-discrimination”. The matrix is applied in two contexts: first, to public EVCI sharing in Germany and, second, to inter-organisational EVCI sharing within the FAMOUS project. In doing so, the matrix is tested, showing potential areas of discrimination. As such, the paper contributes to the still under-researched field of just mobility transitions and the expansion of charging infrastructure. Full article

Contemporary studies of religious modernity tend to view faith systems as static traditions that resist secularization. Although it has recently been acknowledged that local religions may be resilient, scholars often overlook the internal creativity of action that enables such faiths to actively navigate secular constraints. To address this gap, this study investigates a shamanistic folk religion, the Moed faith, to answer a critical question: How can a marginalized religious system innovate to survive within a strict secular order without compromising its spiritual principles? This paper proposes Performative Adaptation as a mechanism of religious creativity by combining historical analysis and ethnographic data through the lens of Actor-Network Theory. It argues that the Moed faith reassembles itself as a dynamic ritual-art continuum rather than remaining a fixed entity. The findings reveal that practitioners actively separate ritual form from function, transforming sacred exorcism chants into the secular performing art of Modlaenz to secure Intangible Cultural Heritage status. Furthermore, this adaptation fosters a transnational Pan-Tai spiritual community, turning rigid geopolitical borders into zones of cultural contact. Ultimately, this research challenges the view of religion as merely a repository of tradition, demonstrating that faith systems can actively engage in institutional innovation and identity construction. Full article

In the context of the digital economy as a driver of economic transformation, digital enterprises have become pivotal actors in value creation and innovation. A conducive business environment is essential for enhancing productivity, competitiveness, and the long-term resilience of entrepreneurial ecosystems. However, the mechanisms through which this environment influences the entry of newborn digital enterprises, a core indicator of sustainable economic activity, remain inadequately explored. This paper develops a government-led business environment index based on three dimensions: the legal environment, the governmental affairs environment, and public services. Using panel data from 35 major Chinese cities spanning 2016 to 2020, we employ a negative binomial regression model to examine how both the overall business environment and its sub-dimensions affect the entry of newborn digital enterprises. The findings reveal that an overall improvement in the urban business environment significantly promotes the entry of newborn digital enterprises and that all three sub-dimensions, namely the legal environment, governmental affairs environment, and public services, collectively facilitate this process. The principal implication is that local governments should focus on the balanced optimization of all business environment elements. Such policies not only stimulate digital startup formation but also contribute to high-quality, resilient, and economically sustainable urban development. Full article

This article examines the emergence of entrepreneurial universities within China’s innovation-driven development agenda, with Shenzhen used as a regional case through which to analyse this process. Drawing on the Triple Helix literature and its later Quadruple and Quintuple Helix extensions, this study uses a qualitative case-study design that combines policy and archival analysis, descriptive questionnaire evidence from 132 respondents, and 42 semi-structured interviews with university, industry, government and venture-capital actors. The analysis shows how Shenzhen’s innovation capacity has been built through the interaction of firm-led technological upgrading, enabling municipal governance and a gradual repositioning of universities. Rather than following the university-centred pattern often associated with mature Western innovation systems, Shenzhen displays a hybrid Helix configuration in which universities acquire entrepreneurial functions through talent provision, external partnerships, practice-oriented knowledge exchange and organisational adaptation. This article therefore contributes to debates on entrepreneurial universities by explaining how such institutions can develop in late-developing, industry-led regions where conventional research infrastructure is initially limited. It also offers policy implications for strengthening sustainable university entrepreneurship, cross-sector coordination and regional innovation resilience in emerging economies. Full article

To this day, the etiology of multiple sclerosis has yet to be fully comprehended by the scientific community. However, the knowledge on mechanisms leading to the development of this neurodegenerative autoimmune disorder increases daily, along with the development of new disease-modifying treatments. A correlation between Epstein–Barr Virus infection and the disease incidence has recently shed light on possible innovative antiviral therapies. Here, we review the literature on Human Endogenous Retroviral sequences as emerging actors for the impairment of remyelination as a major challenge in disease progression. Our primary focus is the HERV-W envelope protein, which has been found at elevated levels in individuals affected by this condition and is suggested here as a potential therapeutic target. We then continue analyzing the clinical cases where antiretroviral drugs have been tested to treat multiple sclerosis patients and, from successes and failures, we finally narrow down our therapeutic hypothesis to the administration of Nucleoside-analog Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors to target the HERV-W envelope protein, possibly leading to remyelination and significantly improving the condition of those affected by the disease. The main purpose of this review is to present a rationale for the therapeutic potential of this drug class and offer a new perspective for therapeutic options against multiple sclerosis. Full article

Background: Leadership in sustainability-oriented inter-organizational networks is increasingly enacted through governance-related practices rather than firm-centric or individualized constructs, reflecting distributed authority, shared accountability, and plural sustainability objectives. Yet scholarship remains conceptually fragmented across adjacent constructs such as orchestration, meta-governance, and brokerage. Objective: This systematic review synthesizes how leadership is conceptualized and enacted through governance mechanisms in inter-organizational networks pursuing sustainability goals. Methods: Peer-reviewed journal articles in English were included; non-peer-reviewed publication types and studies lacking substantive inter-organizational and leadership/governance relevance were excluded. Structured searches were conducted in Scopus and Web of Science Core Collection (last searched 11 February 2026). Results were synthesized through qualitative narrative synthesis using iterative thematic coding and narrative integration. Risk of bias was not formally assessed because the review aimed at conceptual mechanism integration rather than effect estimation; interpretive adequacy safeguards guided inclusion and synthesis. Results: Thirty-one peer-reviewed journal articles were included. Across the corpus, leadership is primarily theorized as (i) orchestration and meta-governance; (ii) governance mechanisms as the formal and informal infrastructure enabling and constraining network leadership; and (iii) brokerage and boundary-spanning practices that align actors and mediate institutional tensions. These dimensions operate as mutually reinforcing layers of coordination capacity, shaping how sustainability trade-offs become governable in the absence of hierarchy. Limitations: Evidence is limited by database-only searching, English-language restriction, and the absence of a formal risk-of-bias appraisal; findings are therefore interpretive and mechanism-oriented rather than effect-based. Conclusions: The review advances a conceptual reframing: leadership in sustainability-oriented inter-organizational networks is best understood not as an actor property but as a systemic coordination capacity embedded in governance architecture. By articulating meta-governance as a design layer, orchestration as a coordination layer, and brokerage as a translation and legitimacy layer, the study develops a multilevel analytical model integrating leadership and governance at the network level, with implications for innovation ecosystems, strategic collaboration, and sustainability transitions. Full article

With the rapid advancement of information and communication technologies, new quality productive forces (NQPF) have emerged as a critical driver of the sustainable development of culture–tourism integration (SDCTI). Using panel data from 31 Chinese provinces spanning 2011–2023, this study constructs composite indices of NQPF and SDCTI based on the entropy method and the coupling coordination model, and empirically examines the impact and underlying mechanisms of NQPF on SDCTI. The results indicate that NQPF significantly promote SDCTI. Mechanism analysis shows that NQPF enhance SDCTI primarily by improving innovation capacity and stimulating entrepreneurial activity, with the mediating effect of entrepreneurship being more pronounced. In addition, NQPF contribute to SDCTI by alleviating labor misallocation, whereas the mediating effect of capital misallocation is not statistically significant. Heterogeneity analysis further reveals that the positive impact of NQPF is stronger in regions with higher levels of artificial intelligence development, lower tourism resource endowments, and weaker transportation infrastructure, highlighting both technological synergy and resource substitution effects. These findings remain robust after a series of endogeneity and robustness tests. Based on these findings, this study highlights the importance of promoting NQPF, strengthening innovation-oriented actors and technological applications, and optimizing labor allocation to fully unleash their enabling role in advancing SDCTI. Full article

Urban water-ecological governance in the Yellow River Basin is shifting from a single administratively dominated model toward a polycentric collaborative system. However, ambiguous responsibilities and overlapping tasks among governments, enterprises, and society often lead to governance conflicts, reduced coordination efficiency, and growing risks to regional ecological security. To address this challenge, this study develops a multi-actor governance analysis framework integrating deep learning, knowledge graphs, and complex network optimization. Stakeholder demands are extracted from multi-source data using a BERT-BiLSTM-CRF model, including policy documents, enterprise reports, and public discourse, and are then organized into a knowledge graph for water-ecological governance. A Relational Graph Attention Network (R-GAT) is subsequently used to transform the knowledge graph into a signed weighted network, enabling the measurement of conflict intensity and the identification of key conflict nodes across governance scenarios. Based on multi-objective optimization, a Pareto frontier is constructed to balance conflict tension, fairness, and governance efficiency, from which a compromise solution for responsibility weighting is identified. An empirical case study of a typical city in the Yellow River Basin shows that the proposed framework can identify core conflict nodes and provide quantitative support for conflict mitigation and coordination adjustment. The findings offer a quantitative reference for institutional innovation and evidence-based decision-making in urban water-ecological governance. Full article

Municipal leadership has become increasingly central to addressing global challenges such as war-related displacement, migration governance, and climate change, reflecting a broader shift toward polycentric and networked forms of multilateralism. This study examines how cities have expanded their international roles over the past decade, responding to governance gaps with pragmatic, people-centred action. Using a qualitative, theory-informed comparative case study design, it draws on three original case studies grounded in direct practitioner experience: European municipal cooperation supporting Ukraine during war; city engagement in shaping the Global Compact for Migration; and municipal leadership in advancing climate action and the emerging climate mobility agenda. Across these cases, the analysis identifies consistent patterns of multi-scalar municipal agency, including decentralized humanitarian action, norm-setting in international negotiations, and innovations in multilevel climate governance. Cities leverage transnational networks—such as the Mayors Migration Council and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group—to amplify political influence, exchange solutions, and secure resources, even as fiscal pressures and political polarization increasingly constrain local capacity. It concludes that cities are becoming important actors in shaping global governance, yet their effectiveness depends on institutionalized representation, enhanced fiscal autonomy, and stronger protections for local leaders. Embedding municipalities more fully within evolving multilateral architectures can better align global commitments with local implementation and improve the resilience and legitimacy of international policy coordination. Full article

Family farming (FF) in Paraguay faces structural challenges related to institutional fragmentation, territorial inequalities, and limited coordination among stakeholders. In this context, the department of Itapúa provides a relevant case for analyzing how the relational structure of actors shapes territorial governance dynamics. This study examines how the network of actors involved in FF is configured and what this structure reveals about coordination processes, using a Social Network Analysis (SNA) approach. Based on 40 surveys conducted between April and May 2024, a directed and weighted network comprising 35 actors was constructed, including institutional, technical, productive, and market-related stakeholders. The analysis focuses on the intensity and structure of relationships shaping flows of information, resources, and territorial organization. The results reveal a relatively cohesive but functionally differentiated network. Technical actors and public institutions—particularly municipalities and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG)—occupy central and intermediary positions that facilitate coordination and information flows. In contrast, individual producers and market vendors remain in peripheral positions, limiting their influence within the network. The network structure combines elements of bonding and bridging social capital, although the limited presence of weak ties may constrain innovation and the incorporation of new actors. These findings point to a form of distributed territorial governance characterized by interdependence among actors, but also by structural asymmetries and coordination gaps between functional domains. Based on the results, the study highlights the need to strengthen coordination mechanisms, improve the integration of peripheral actors, and promote new connections between less articulated groups. Overall, this study provides empirical evidence on territorial governance in FF systems in Paraguay and demonstrates the value of SNA as a tool for analyzing coordination processes in rural contexts in Latin America. Full article

The aircraft landing problem (ALP) poses significant challenges for traditional Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) due to its vast search space and reliance on inefficient random simulations. To overcome these limitations, this paper proposes a novel Transformer-Augmented Monte Carlo Tree Search (TMCTS) algorithm. Our approach integrates a reinforcement learning framework that incorporates key operational constraints, including wake turbulence separation and time windows, and employs a cost function aimed at minimizing both delay time and fuel consumption. A core innovation is the replacement of the conventional random simulation phase in MCTS with a Transformer-based value predictor. This leverages the Transformer’s superior ability to model sequences and capture global dependencies among flights, thereby dramatically accelerating search convergence. Specifically, we designed a two-head Transformer network (comprising policy and value heads) to provide informed prior knowledge, which effectively guides the selection and expansion steps of the MCTS tree. The model is trained within an Actor–Critic framework, utilizing behavior cloning for pre-training followed by reinforcement learning for fine-tuning. Experimental evaluations on the standard OR-Library benchmark demonstrate that our TMCTS method significantly reduces scheduling deviation compared to state-of-the-art baselines (including FCFS, DPALO+GA, DPALO+PSO, and CPLEX). Moreover, it achieves a 93.7% reduction in computation time relative to the CPLEX method, highlighting its superior efficiency and practical applicability for real-time scheduling. Full article