It takes two sides to build a bridge: universities as institutional entrepreneurs in knowledge-based regional development

This episode discusses how regional stakeholders come together to boost knowledge-based innovation and economic development in their regions and the preconditions for increasing the bridge-building role of universities in this regard. Lisa Nieth focuses on the alignment of expectations from regional stakeholders and the corresponding capabilities of universities, and the role of trust between individuals in these processes. She emphasizes the uniqueness of regional constellations, the need for empowerment of individual academics who are willing to engage regionally and the installation of necessary institutions within universities. By providing examples from two regions (Aalborg in Denmark and Twente in Netherlands) that she examined, Lisa concludes with some practical takeaways for policymakers. You can read more about Lisa’s research by following this link. https://research.utwente.nl/en/publications/it-takes-two-sides-to-build-a-bridge-universities-as-institutiona