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Institutional openness as dynamic regional capacity: Evidence from four regions

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  • Jantos, Louisa
  • Dekker, Thekla
  • Bizer, Kilian

Abstract

Institutions shape the conditions under which entrepreneurship and innovation unfold, yet how their degree of openness mediates sustainability-oriented development trajectories remains systematically underexplored. Drawing on 98 expert interviews across four high-performing European innovation regions, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Zürich, we develop and empirically ground a multi-dimensional framework of institutional openness as a dynamic regional capacity. Our findings reveal that institutional density is a necessary but insufficient condition for sustainability-oriented regional development: what matters equally is institutional permeability-the table to which regional configurations remain open to external actors, knowledge, and alternative development trajectories. Helsinki's highly integrative configuration stands in marked contrast to Zürich's more fragmented one, with Copenhagen and Stockholm occupying distinct intermediate positions. The interaction between formal and informal institutional dimensions, and the underappreciated role of intermediary organizations, critically determines whether regions can redirect entrepreneurship and innovation toward sustainability goals. We derive implications for place-based innovation policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Jantos, Louisa & Dekker, Thekla & Bizer, Kilian, 2026. "Institutional openness as dynamic regional capacity: Evidence from four regions," ifh Working Papers 49/2026, Volkswirtschaftliches Institut für Mittelstand und Handwerk an der Universität Göttingen (ifh).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:ifhwps:342483
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Gregory O’Shea & Steffen Farny & Henri Hakala, 2021. "The buzz before business: a design science study of a sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 1097-1120, February.
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • R58 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Regional Development Planning and Policy

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