Marta Somoza Medina (p)

Chrysi Stathaki

Industrial development is influenced, in general terms, by cycles of expansion and contraction of the economy that lead to the increase or decrease of the demand and manufacturing of certain products and the hiring or firing of workers. It is also affected by the emerge of technological advances as the automation of the montage chain or the use of artificial intelligent; together with the availability of financial credits and global market dynamics like outsourcing, offshoring or other services remotely provided.
In spite of all those external fluctuations that generate constrictions to the manufacture activity, it is noted that local enterprises dotted in medium populated areas present a tendency to maintain its activity in crisis times due to its ability to adapt to adverse circumstances. The reasons for this situation are attached to its particular conditions like manufactured goods related to basic necessities, family business structure, low amount of investment, and certain independence from massive demand of metropolitan areas.
This is the approach that describes the situation of small firms in rural Galician territory, in the west periphery of Europe, where extensive areas present population scattered on small villages, with densities around 300 to 30 inhabitants per km2. This is a region that during the first half of the twentieth century, has experimented a scarcely industrial development, mainly focused on fish-canning manufacturing (Carmona, 1985) and build construction, on account of a national strategy directed to the increase of the agricultural production of forage pastures, milk and veal (Lois, 2018 ). After decades of depopulation of inner rural areas, the beginning of the present century shows recovering economical dynamics that have been carried out by sectors where traditional crafts have been blended with new techniques allowing small companies to surpass difficulties.
Data for 2023 reveal that industrial production in Galicia stands out of manufacture food, wood, furniture and paper and textil. The distribution of this industrial activity, according to the Galician Statistic Institut, is bigger in low and medium populated, accumulating almost the 79% of the employees (Source GSI, 2023). It is also significant that although the amount of locals has slightly increased, although industrial estates have attracted few of the new establishments.
Therefore, the ongoing research point out that the dynamics of industrial activities in rural peripheral areas follow particular patterns based on the continuity of inherited familiar business structures that are able to manage opportunity factors to face economic downturns.

Chrysi Stathaki (p)

Chongshuying Ruan

Geographical proximity, referring to the physical location of potential collaborators such as universities, businesses, research centers, and individual researchers, has always been crucial for fostering and enhancing innovation in its various forms. This importance stems from the fact that distance can often introduce linguistic, cultural, institutional, and other differences that may hinder collaborative efforts (Kirat & Lung, 1999; Torre & Rallet, 2005). However, insights from the French School of Proximity Dynamics in the 1990s marked a new scientific perspective by revealing that proximity also includes non-spatial factors that can play an equally important, if not more significant, role in the innovation process. These non-spatial dimensions encompass cognitive, social, institutional, and organizational aspects. By exploring the various dimensions of proximity, researchers discovered a comprehensive support mechanism centered around mutual trust, hierarchies, cognitive abilities, institutional compliance, and other factors. This complex framework aims to enhance communication and coordination among involved parties, ultimately fostering innovation (Boschma, 2005; Mattes, 2012).
In Greece's emerging Aerospace sector, which is defined by its focus on knowledge, technology, and innovation, cognitive proximity among the parties involved is not just a basic requirement—it is essential. This sector addresses critical issues, such as national defense, weather forecasting, navigation, satellite communications, sensors, automation and control systems, and remote sensing, that necessitate both explicit and tacit knowledge sharing, depending on the type and stage of each project. However, it’s important to investigate at which level of collaboration -whether in R&D, management innovation, product innovation, process innovation, marketing innovation, or quality control- knowledge dissemination occurs most frequently among partners, both at domestic and international levels.
An extensive investigation of 22 entities within the Greek Aerospace Cluster (Corallia si-cluster) revealed that the significance of geographical proximity (or distance) has become relative. Detailed questionnaires were used to gather insights, and the factors, conditions, and specific characteristics contributing to this shift will be presented as preliminary conclusions at the conference, primarily focusing on the role of cognitive proximity as the key element for establishing collaborative relationships.

Chongshuying Ruan (p), Giorgio Fazio, Jonathan Jones

László Szerb

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is experiencing strong global growth, yet its impact on environmental pollution remains highly debated. The Pollution Haven Hypothesis and Pollution Halo Hypothesis dominate discussions, but the role of green innovation as a mediating factor in this relationship remains underexplored, particularly at the European regional level.

This study examines how green innovation mediates the relationship between FDI and environmental pollution, addressing the critical question of whether firms with higher levels of green innovation are more effective at reducing emissions. Unlike previous research, which primarily focuses on country-level analyses, this study shifts the focus to the regional dimension, filling a key gap in the literature.

Using mediation analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM), the study quantifies the indirect effects of FDI on emissions via green innovation, while controlling for firm size, profitability, and industry characteristics. Robustness checks include alternative green innovation metrics (e.g., environmental certifications, R&D expenditures) and sensitivity analyses across industries and geographic regions.

The study introduces a new theoretical framework, suggesting that green innovation plays a key moderating role in determining how FDI influences environmental pollution. Findings offer valuable policy implications, helping governments refine foreign investment strategies, guiding multinational corporations (MNCs) and local enterprises toward sustainable investment decisions, and contributing to global environmental governance.

Future research should further distinguish between Green FDI and non-Green FDI, explore the sector-specific impact of FDI on green innovation, and assess how digital technologies (AI, blockchain) can amplify green innovation spillover effects.

László Szerb (p), Zoltan Acs, Esteban Lafuente, Stefan Apostol, Judit Szakos

Marta Somoza Medina

The digital revolution has profoundly changed our whole life. Metamorphological alterations characterize the market processes including entrepreneurship. The complexity of these transformations requires to view entrepreneurship and digitalization from a systemic perspective. While digital entrepreneurship ecosystem (DEE) research has been rising, its measurement is still limited. Sussan and Acs (2017) provide a holistic concept of the digital entrepreneurship ecosystem in which it is positioned at the intersection of digital and entrepreneurship ecosystems. The Digital Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Index is a newly developed composite indicator that measures DEEs at country level. The four-subindices and twelve pillars of the proposed composite indicator seek to capture digital technology progress, the evolvement of platforms, institutional development and the support to digital entrepreneurs to absorb digital technologies, start or grow a new business. The sub-indices also account for the role of the most important players of DEEs, namely institutions, digital infrastructure and technology providers, and digital users. The Digital Technology Entrepreneurship, one of the four sub-indices, captures the multi-agency perspective of digital entrepreneurship and includes financials, key employees, universities, and other supporting institutions and firms that contribute to the expanded use of digital technology and the emergence of startups and scaleups.
The DEE Index is available for 170 countries during 2017-2022. Over the Covid and post-Covid era (2020-2022) the digital entrepreneurship ecosystem grew by 7.3%. However, the impact of the digital revolution drastically varies across economies. Among developed countries the US is a dominant leader while the European nations seem to show a moderate advancement especially in terms of the multi-billion-dollar worth startups and scale-ups. The US leads the DEE Index 2022 ranking followed by Denmark and the UK. For large EU states, Germany (11th), France (15th), Spain (17th), and Italy (24th) show significant disadvantage compared to the US. Going into the sub-index and the pillar level, the EU is behind the US in all pillars. The gap is the smallest in the Digital Technology Infrastructure and the Digital User Citizenship pillars, whereas larger disparities are observed in the Digital Multisided Platform components and the Digital Technology Entrepreneurship pillars, which implies less agency support to digital absorption, digital startups and scaleups. While the leading European countries are better than the US in institutions including some aspects of regulation as Digital Competition and Digital Rights, they are far from the US in the agency related pillars of Digital Absorption, Digital Startup and Digital Scaleup.