Eco-innovation and green start-ups – an evidence review

Richard Blundel, Professor of Enterprise and Organisation, and Dr Sam Hampton, a colleague from the Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford, are the co-authors of a new report, ‘Eco-innovation and Green Start-ups: An Evidence Review’.

This is the second of two reviews that Richard and Sam have prepared for the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC), a UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) centre that is based at the University of Warwick. The ERC publishes a series of reviews that draw together the latest evidence, identify research gaps and address key policy questions.

The authors examine new ‘green’ start-up ventures and other forms of eco-innovation in which small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an active role. They also review recent evidence on entrepreneurial and innovative initiatives that address specific environmental challenges, including the Climate Emergency.

This report is a companion piece to their State of the Art (SOTA) review, ‘SMEs and Net Zero: An Evidence Review’, which was published by the ERC in July. The earlier report focused on the policies and practices that are required to reduce carbon emissions in existing SMEs.

The nature of the zero-carbon transition will vary geographically, and different solutions will be needed for various economic sectors and socio-demographic groups. As eco-innovation attracts increased attention in the coming years, it is imperative that investments and policy interventions are aligned with the ‘levelling-up’ agenda, to ensure that the benefits of clean growth are fairly distributed across the UK.

Review authors Professor Richard Blundel (OUBS, pictured) and Dr Sam Hampton