Place-Based Social Innovation Ecosystems: Components, Emergence, and the Challenge of Strategic Orchestration

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the components and emergence of place-based social innovation ecosystems, highlighting them as promising configurations for tackling complex societal challenges at the local level. Design/methodology/approach – The study draws on a three-year, multi-university research project conducted in Italy. For the purposes of this paper, the empirical analysis relies on a desk analysis of 67 crowdsourced case studies and one focus group with practitioners. Adopting an abductive, qualitative approach, the research develops a conceptual model to understand the key components of place-based social innovation ecosystems. Findings – The study identifies four key components of place-based social innovation ecosystems – entrepreneurial solutions, local public administration support, social impact measurement and impact finance – and finds that place-based social innovation ecosystems typically feature multiple components working in combination, with at least two of the four components present in observed cases. Originality/value – This paper contributes a novel framework for understanding the components and emergence of place-based social innovation ecosystems, which complements existing frameworks such as mission-oriented innovation, civic wealth creation and collective impact. Keywords Strategic management, Social economy, Public value, Transformative social innovation, Local governance, Civic wealth creation, Social entrepreneurship, Collaborative governance Paper type Research paper