Ioana Stefan, Mälardalen University

Ikenna Uzuegbunam, Howard University

Brett Anitra Gilbert, American University

Wim Vanhaverbeke, Antwerp University

Kadigia Faccin, Fundação Dom Cabral

Yanbo Wang, University of Hong Kong

This special issue addresses entrepreneurial ecosystems in emerging economies, where new ventures face distinctive obstacles including institutional weakness, high uncertainty, and limited market access. While research on entrepreneurial ecosystems has expanded significantly, most studies focus on developed nations, leaving a knowledge gap about how these ecosystems function in the Global South and other emerging regions.

The call welcomes research that balances Global North and Global South perspectives, examines ecosystem emergence and development over time, applies systems thinking, and investigates how digitalization shapes entrepreneurial activity in resource-constrained contexts. Contributors are encouraged to explore how entrepreneurial ecosystems address institutional voids, support different types of entrepreneurs, and contribute to sustainable development goals.

Appel publié par Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. Voir l'appel sur le site de l'éditeur. Fiche de l'appel sur kerostig.

Potential topics

• EE emergence and development in emerging economies
• EE dynamics and evolution
• EE orchestration, governance and brokering
• Digital affordances and digitalization
• EE metrics and measures
• Valley of Death gaps
• Institutional and infrastructure challenges
• Resource constraints in emerging economies
• EE lifecycle and temporality
• Multi-level analysis of ecosystems
• Systems perspective on EE
• Sustainability and resilience of EE
• Policy effectiveness for EE support
• Global North and Global South perspectives
• Refugee and diaspora entrepreneurship
• Venture funding instruments and diaspora remittances
• Circular economy and EE
• Regenerative business practices
• Social impact and vulnerable communities
• Digital technology effects on EE
• Computer science methods for ecosystem analysis
• Geography of entrepreneurship

Timeline

• January 30, 2027: Submission window opens
• April 30, 2027: Full paper submission deadline

Associate editors

• David Sirmon, University of Washington

Florian Becker-Ritterspach, HTW Berlin

Raghda El Ebrashi, German International University (Cairo)

Jasper Hotho, Copenhagen Business School

Environmental degradation has become an urgent global concern, with emerging and developing economies facing a particularly complex set of challenges. While many of these countries are rapidly industrializing and increasingly integrated into global value chains, they often lack the regulatory infrastructures, institutional capacity, and enforcement mechanisms necessary to ensure environmentally responsible economic activity. These so-called environmental institutional voids amplify the negative externalities of business operations, threatening both ecological integrity and long-term development prospects.

Appel publié par Critical perspectives on international business. Lire l'appel complet sur le site de l'éditeur. Fiche de l'appel sur kerostig.

Potential topics

• Defining and conceptualizing environmental institutional voids in emerging markets, and assessing how these voids impact environmental outcomes and corporate behavior. What constitutes an "environmental" institutional void, and how do formal and informal institutions interact to exacerbate or mitigate negative externalities of business operations
• Examining how firms strategically respond to institutional voids to achieve environmental objectives, including circumventing strategies (bypassing institutional deficiencies), coping mechanisms (adapting to challenges in the absence of robust institutions), and compensating actions (offsetting negative environmental impacts when formal governance is lacking)
• Investigating the influence of multinational enterprises in host countries with weak environmental institutions. How do MNEs transfer environmental standards and best practices from developed to emerging markets, and with what effects? In what ways can MNEs act as catalysts for improved local environmental governance or institutional change?
• Investigating the emergence of environmental or "green" innovation in contexts of institutional voids. When formal support or infrastructure is lacking, how do companies and entrepreneurs innovate to solve environmental problems? Topics may include frugal innovation, social innovation partnerships, and novel business models that address institutional gaps
• Analyzing how institutional voids influence the transition towards sustainability (such as shifts to low-carbon energy, circular economy, or sustainable agriculture) in emerging markets. How actors adapt business models to propel sustainability transitions despite voids
• Exploring how state actors in emerging markets influence the persistence or reduction of environmental institutional voids. How different state configurations enable or constrain MNEs in implementing robust environmental strategies and how tensions between national sovereignty and transnational environmental standards shape corporate practices
• Identifying public policy frameworks and collaborative approaches that can help close environmental institutional voids. What roles can governments, international organizations, and civil society play in partnership with business to strengthen environmental governance?

Timeline

• January 1, 2026: Opening date for manuscripts submissions
• September 30, 2026: Closing date for manuscripts submission