Strangers who share one car. A network around a drug addicted youth who offer care themselves, under the guidance of a professional. A person paying back an hour of painting window frames with an hour of working in someone else’s garden. These are all examples of a more social economy, which is growing slowly but surely, also in the Netherlands. At Maastricht University, Prof. René Kemp is studying how this transition from an old to a new economy is taking shape worldwide. Working together to do...
This lecture provided insights from a combination of science and practical experiences on the potential power of female entrepreneurs. Prof. Josette Dijkhuizen discussed the results of a recent European study on women in social enterprises as well as her experiences of working with women entrepreneurs in the Netherlands and potential female entrepreneurs in refugee camps in Lebanon....
Global Entrepreneurship Week kicks off today, with contributions from more than 160 countries and countless organisations. This year’s event takes place amid a worldwide ‘refugee crisis’, prompting discussions at all levels. It is therefore the perfect time to look at what refugees can bring to host communities: especially entrepreneurial spirit, write PhD Fellows Katrin Marchand and Ortrun Merkle. We all have a mental imagine of what a classical entrepreneur is, someone who ha...
“Policies to promote entrepreneurship among poor and marginalised groups are politically appealing but generally not the most effective… increased efforts should be made to help promising and established enterprises expand, produce higher quality goods and connect to global markets,” argue Drs. Micheline Goedhuys and Eleonora Nillesen. Entrepreneurship is said to be a key strategy in fostering economic growth and development. Yet there is a large heterogeneity in entrepreneurs ...
Our press review features the latest publications by UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance. Output for October includes seven journal articles, six working papers, three discussion papers and three PhD dissertations: covering nanotech cancer therapy, firm investment behaviour, and young entrepreneurs in rural Africa, among many others. Journal Articles ‘Natural Resources and Violent Conflict’ discusses the rich and multifaceted literature, both theoretical and empirical, on the complex relation...
A new book co-edited by UNU Rector David M. Malone features a chapter on “Entrepreneurship and Economic Development” by Prof. Wim Naudé. The chapter is drawn from a paper which ranks among the Top 10 monthly downloads of the IZA Discussion Paper Series. According to Naudé, “Entrepreneurship is… a valid and important subject of study for development scholars, and development is a worthwhile subject of study for entrepreneurship and management scholars. “The growing availability of more and better...