Transforming regions, change agency, and policy

Markus Grillitsch

Chapter 5 in Research Handbook on Regions and Transformative Innovation Policy, 2026, pp 68-85 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The transformation of regions is hard to imagine without local actors who contribute to change processes, which is referred to as change agency. This chapter provides a synthesis of research on change agency, drawing on two large-scale research projects covering Nordic countries, Middle and Eastern European countries, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The chapter introduces the change agency approach to transforming places, explains why it is important, and suggests how it may be conceptualised. The chapter then discusses empirical insights into change agency for regional transformation. Accordingly, combinations of different forms of change agency, innovative and institutional entrepreneurship, and place-based leadership make it possible to transform regions, including in times of crisis and in places that are in long-term decline. However, the conditions for change agency differ between regions, requiring different strategies and approaches to mobilise change agency. Finally, the chapter elaborates on the role of local government as change agents and on how national policies can stimulate change agency for regional transformation.

Keywords: Change agency; Opportunity spaces; Transformation pathways; Local and regional development; Governance; Policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035309924
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781035309931.00013 (application/pdf)
Our link check indicates that this URL is bad, the error code is: 403 Forbidden

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:22217_5

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jack Sweeney ().