In this paper, we examine the twin transition of European regions in green and digital technologies using patent data from 1995 to 2020. We investigate how regions have developed comparative advantages in green or digital technologies, or in both. To analyse how these comparative advantages have evolved over time, we apply geographical sequence analysis - a method recently introduced to regional research - to explore the trajectories of regions with respect to twin transition technologies. In a subsequent step, we use regression models to explain the observed sequence patterns. Our findings indicate that regions leading in both green and digital technologies (twin leaders) first establish comparative advantages in digital technologies before developing them in green domains. This suggests that the trajectory towards a twin transition is more likely to emerge through a digital pathway rather than a green one.
How does exposure to extreme weather events influence firms' eco-innovation? Drawing on Construal Level Theory, we argue that extreme weather events collapse psychological distance, transforming abstract climate change into concrete operational reality through two pathways (direct managerial cognition and indirect shifts in regional environmental concern). Using causal mediation analysis with 8,366 Spanish firms (2008-2016), we decompose the association of extreme weather episodes with eco-innovation into direct and indirect pathways, finding that the direct pathway predominates over the indirect. This relationship is strongest among small, lower-rigidity firms. Their reaction to heat waves and dry spells is nearly twice the aggregate estimate, whereas medium and large firms show null responses. Sectoral heterogeneity reinforces this pattern; services respond through the indirect pathway, while agriculture and manufacturing respond through direct operational necessity. These findings indicate that low organisational rigidity, not mere physical exposure, shapes whether extreme weather events are associated with eco-innovation.
This study explores the impact of indirect local ties on firms' innovation output, focusing on the role of intermediaries connecting firms to their indirect partners in an interfirm R&D alliance network. Our findings reveal a positive relationship between indirect local ties and innovation output. Moreover, this study introduces a comparative approach to examine two alliance governance mechanisms, relative governance strength and relative trust. Relative governance strength as a formal governance mechanism, through equity-based vs. non-equity structures, strengthens the positive impact of indirect local ties on firms' innovation output. Yet, relative trust as an informal, trust-based governance mechanism, through repeated vs. non-repeated partnerships, does not exhibit a significant moderating effect. These insights enhance our understanding of how firms can navigate intermediaries' self-interested behaviour to optimise innovation output, offering practical implications for strategic alliance management in knowledge-intensive industries.
