Research Questions

Following in the footsteps of Nobel Prize winner Elinor Ostrom, the research project challenges the presumption that governments are doing a better job than users, citizens, private firms and civil society organizations when it comes to generating green solutions that protect our climate, natural resources and biodiversity. Hence, the focus is on the strength of local partnerships and the project posits that local arenas for co-creation are an important lever for change. The project will evaluate the outcomes of local co-creation projects and study the institutional and organizational designs and the forms of governance and leadership that condition the co-creation of innovative green solutions.

Understanding the collaborative governance processes for designing and implementing innovative solutions is essential to supplement technical solutions to the climate crisis, biosphere degradation and resource depletion. The study will seek to identify governance factors, such as legal responsibilities, strategies for inclusive and empowered participation, mechanisms for conflict mediation, and the access to blended financing, that condition successful co-creation of green solutions.