Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Sustainability Transitions (EIST)

The overall purpose of the EIST research group is to understand the development and diffusion of radical solutions in sectors that produce and deliver societal services such as energy, agri-food and materials.  

Our starting point is that the challenges society faces today related to sustainability must be understood through analyses of the emergence, scaling and decline of interwoven technologies and practices leading to sectoral transformations. Entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainability transitions are core perspectives for understanding these processes. EIST also provides education and policy advice within these fields. 

The group carries out research on multiple analytical levels: from work on innovation and entrepreneurship processes at the (inter- and intra-) organizational level, to research on innovation systems, industry dynamics and sustainability transitions in societally critical sectors. Empirically, research looks at agriculture, electricity, food, maritime shipping, plastics, carbon capture, utilization and storage, forestry, aquaculture, and energy-intensive industries. 

EIST members engage in qualitative and quantitative research, aiming to contribute to theory development within innovation studies, organization and management studies, and sustainability transitions. From that platform, the group also engages with research on wider societal transformations, planetary boundaries, policy studies, political economy, environmental law, geography, and socio-ecological systems research. The group also carries out applied research to inform policymaking.  

In terms of teaching, EIST offers a portfolio of BSc, MSc, and PhD courses on central topics such as innovation, entrepreneurship, value chain, sustainability transitions, consultancy, business development and intellectual property (IP) strategy. All courses are relevant for students at the Faculty of Science interested in complementing their professional profile with knowledge on innovation, entrepreneurship and management.