Urban and rural areas differ in economic, social and environmental terms. Due to the diverging dynamics in urban and rural areas, the social and economic distance between them might increase in the ...future even more. Rural entrepreneurs with linkages to urban areas are able to bridge the rural-urban divide by accessing some of the urban features, such as knowledge and markets, while at the same time profiting from the advantages of their peripheral location. This paper highlights exploratory results from qualitative interviews with rural entrepreneurs, and we illustrate entrepreneurial linkages to urban centers. The interview data show that rural entrepreneurs with rural-urban linkages develop sensibility for core market demands and trends, they valuate rural assets, and they combine rural and urban sources of knowledge for innovation. Through their entrepreneurial activity, rural entrepreneurs with linkages to urban areas might constitute an opposite force to polarizing concentration of economic activities in cities. Hence, rural entrepreneurs with urban linkages might contribute to sustainable economic relationships between urban and rural areas.
New Highlander Entrepreneurs in the Swiss Alps Mayer, Heike; Meili, Rahel
Mountain research and development,
2016-August, 20160801, 2016-08-00, 2016-08-01, Letnik:
36, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Mountain regions are generally seen as depopulating. However, in the European Alps, a new migration trend can be observed that may represent a reversal of out-migration from these regions. The ...in-migration of so-called new highlanders brings people from lowland urban and peri-urban areas to mountain regions to live and work. Research on the economic and social contributions of these new highlanders is sparse, and there are no studies that focus on their entrepreneurial activities. This study examined the characteristics and contributions of new highlander entrepreneurs and found that they are unlike traditional amenity migrants who migrate because of quality of life. New highlander entrepreneurs migrate not only for quality of life reasons, they moreover follow business opportunities and contribute to the economic and social life of their chosen locations. Based on attributes such as personal circumstances, recognition and exploitation of opportunities, business strategies, and economic and social contributions, we grouped new highlander entrepreneurs into 4 categories and explored their reasons for migrating and other characteristics. We conclude that mountain regions represent viable locations for entrepreneurs, despite the many disadvantages associated with this peripheral context.
This study addresses the role of different financial resources in driving circular economy activities at the firm level, which are a particular form of innovation. While the impact of financial ...resources on innovation activities has been widely researched, their relationship with the circular economy has not been adequately studied. Previous studies have focused primarily on corporate financial resources and investments by banks and investors. By using unique survey data from Swiss firms, we break new ground by examining the importance of regional financial resources, including regional household income and public procurement volumes. In doing so, we make a valuable contribution to the fields of (eco-)innovation and economic geography. We also examine the timing of financial resource deployment, looking at both early adopters and pioneers of the circular economy. Our results, derived from a comprehensive multivariate regression analysis that includes a representative sample of over 1000 observations, confirm that regional household income and public procurement volumes play a central role in the successful implementation of the circular economy – that is, money matters. Additionally, our research reveals distinct and independent impacts of corporate and regional financial resources, advocating for their combined influence. Importantly, we find that financial resources are crucial for both beginners and leaders in the circular economy, emphasizing the profound policy implications and central role in driving and supporting the circular economy.
•Analyzing financial resources' impact on firms' circular economy activities•Focusing on regional resources like household income and public procurement•Conducted multivariate regression analysis with over 1000 observations•Different financial resources exhibit largely independent effects.•Findings show significant effects for both beginners and leaders in the circular economy.
The relative lack of variety and density of people, companies and knowledge institutions in small towns compel companies to seek new knowledge beyond their location. However, there is only scant ...research explaining the local characteristics that influence companies' ability to access external knowledge. In this article, the focus lies on the obstacles and opportunities that arise due to companies' location in small towns and that emerge when they seek to access external knowledge sources. A multiple case study design with qualitative interview data from five multinational high-tech companies in small towns in the eastern part of Switzerland is used. Also, a theoretical replication of the case study by investigating two single domestic high-tech companies was conducted. The results show that a thin labour market, a lack of urban amenities and the availability of transportation connections to bigger cities are most important for accessing the knowledge of new employees, collaborating with universities and for attending workshops or conferences. On the whole, multinational companies in small towns face the same obstacles and opportunities as single domestic companies in small towns.
Sustainable Business Fischer, Manuel; Foord, Daniel; Frecè, Jan ...
2023, 2023.
eBook
Odprti dostop
This open access book is a compact guide to the development of sustainable business, which has become the central concept in discussions about the future development of humanity and planet earth. It ...provides basic terminology and concepts on sustainable business and offers insights into a new management paradigm that integrates social and environmental dimensions into business models, strategies, and operations. New business concepts such as the donut economy, the circular economy, social innovation and sustainable leadership are introduced and the book outlines how they influence the way we run businesses today and in the future. This book lays the foundation for new management thinking in business and academia, making it a essential reader for professionals and students alike.
It is generally accepted that cities and other forms of geographic agglomerations are conducive to innovation because their density and variety of firms, sectors and individuals create a diverse ...environment. However, a growing body of work shows that innovation also occurs in peripheral regions and small towns. Furthermore, work on rural social networks shows that diversity is multidimensional, and that along certain dimensions networks developed in rural areas are more diverse than those observed in cities. In this paper, we develop these arguments, then report our observations of seven successful firms in Swiss small towns. These firms benefit from at least three types of diversity: internal diversity; multiplexed interactions between workers at different hierarchical levels; and external diversity as firms reach beyond the region. We conclude that diversity conducive to firm‐level innovation is not a specifically urban attribute: at least some of its dimensions are present in small towns and more peripheral areas.
Small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) contribute to the economic performance of whole metropolitan regions. However, the variety of factors that influence the economic development of SMSTs is ...understudied and the impact and relevance of their local policies are especially unclear. This article studies local policies of SMSTs within the metropolitan region of Zurich (Switzerland) and the impact of local policies on the economic specialization of these towns. Switzerland serves as an interesting context in which to study SMSTs, particularly those in metropolitan regions, due to their constant growth and the high local autonomy enjoyed by Swiss local governments. Using a multiple case study design that relies on a pair-wise comparison, we find that the economic specialization of SMSTs can mainly be explained by factors that are exogenous to local policy-making such as the town's location and its connectivity. Land-use strategies are the only local policies that can influence the economic specialization of SMSTs. Therefore, SMSTs are well advised to invest in professionalized land-use departments and to coordinate their land-use strategies with neighbouring jurisdictions.
Knowledge about economic characteristics and development dynamics of small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) is scarce. The aim of this article is to present insights into economic characteristics and ...development dynamics of SMSTs in Switzerland and to conceptualize the linkages of SMSTs with neighboring centers and hinterlands. SMSTs in Switzerland are independent jurisdictions that are in charge of their economic development strategies, tax base, etc, which can shape their socio-economic characteristics independently of the larger urban agglomeration they belong to. This circumstance makes them especially interesting for research particularly regarding the economic heterogeneity, socioeconomic performance and functional linkages these SMSTs have. The article presents seven types of SMSTs that have different economic characteristics and socio-economic dynamics. The types were built using cluster analysis. The typology shows that SMSTs can have different economic characteristics and development dynamics despite being embedded in the same regional context. For analyzing relationships between cluster membership and linkages to neighboring centers, we carried out an analysis of variance. It can be inferred that the intensity of linkages of SMSTs vary according to the type of SMSTs. Obwohl klein- und mittelgrosse Städte (SMSTs) wichtige Funktionen in nationalen urbanen Systemen haben, ist wenig Wissen über sie vorhanden. Dieser Artikel hat daher das Ziel, einen Einblick in wirtschaftliche Charakteristiken und Entwicklungsdynamiken von SMSTs in der Schweiz zu geben und deren Verbindungen zu den benachbarten Städten und Umland zu konzeptualisieren. SMSTs in der Schweiz können Strategien zur wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung, Steuersätze, etc. selber festlegen und somit ihre sozioökonomische Entwicklung auch unabhängig von grösseren städtischen Agglomerationen beeinflussen. Dieser Umstand macht die Schweizer SMSTs hinsichtlich wirtschaftlicher Heterogenität, sozioökonomischer Charakteristiken und funktionellen Verbindungen spannend für die Forschung. Mit Hilfe einer Cluster Analyse wurden sieben SMST Typen gebildet, welche verschiedene wirtschaftliche Charakteristiken und sozioökonomische Dynamiken aufweisen. Die Analyse zeigt, dass SMSTs trotz Einbettung in derselben Region, unterschiedliche wirtschaftliche Charakteristiken und Entwicklungsdynamiken haben. Um die Beziehung zu benachbarten Städten und dem Umland zu analysieren, wurde eine Varianzanalyse durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse deuten darauf hin, dass je nach Typ von SMST die Intensität der Verbindungen zu anderen Orten unterschiedlich ist.
Abstract This paper investigates whether, and what kind of, regional knowledge has a stimulating effect on circular economy (CE) innovation by companies. We thus add to the literature on regional ...knowledge spillovers, which has rarely focussed explicitly on the CE. For the empirical study, we create econometric regressions based on a representative dataset with extensive information on the CE activities of about 1400 Swiss firms. The results confirm that regional knowledge is important for the implementation of CE innovations. However, geographical distance and the quality of the knowledge must be taken into account, that is, companies primarily learn from the best.
Mountain regions are generally seen as depopulating. However, in the European Alps, a new migration trend can be observed that may represent a reversal of outmigration from these regions. The ...in-migration of so-called new highlanders brings people from lowland urban and peri-urban areas to mountain regions to live and work. Research on the economic and social contributions of these new highlanders is sparse, and there are no studies that focus on their entrepreneurial activities. This study examined the characteristics and contributions of new highlander entrepreneurs and found that they are unlike traditional amenity migrants who migrate because of quality of life. New highlander entrepreneurs migrate not only for quality of life reasons, they moreover follow business opportunities and contribute to the economic and social life of their chosen locations. Based on attributes such as personal circumstances, recognition and exploitation of opportunities, business strategies, and economic and social contributions, we grouped new highlander entrepreneurs into 4 categories and explored their reasons for migrating and other characteristics. We conclude that mountain regions represent viable locations for entrepreneurs, despite the many disadvantages associated with this peripheral context.
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