Innovative Communities: Collective Entrepreneurship in a Rural Community Context

This project focuses on the collective entrepreneurial resources of innovative rural communities. The aim is to contribute to an increased set of tools for stimulating entrepreneurial activity at community level. Supportive measures both at individual, co mmunity and municipality level are emphasized. We elaborate on the role that individuals may play in the development of institutions and services for the benefit of the community. The community level may represent a strong action platform for entrepreneur ial activity through established social networks, and motivations for mutual supportive activity and community citizen welfare. In this respect, we also emphasize the role of formal institutions, not the least the role of the municipality in backing commu nity entrepreneurship. We will contribute to an understanding of how one may link volunteer effort and the civic society with more formal business and government-based resources. The resource-weak municipality may have a large potential for development am ong citizens that are interested in contributing to the whole society through additional effort. To analyze entrepreneurship and innovation within such communities, we look at the mix of entrepreneurial resources at individual, organization and society le vel. Eight rural communities will be studied closely using a triangulation of qualitative and quanitative methods. By following these communities in their endavours of becoming more innovatiive, we will investigate: - the characteristics of the aktors i nvolved in developing innovative communities and the role of their action platform - the characteristics of the collective entrepreneurship processes in the rural communities, and the contextual factors promoting and hindering them - the government suppor t tools which can be utilized to support community entrepreneurship in rural communities