In their article on Catalonia’s sustainability transition, Acebillo-Baqué, Velasco, and Boni explore Collaborative Public Sector Innovation (CPSI) as a policy design challenge. They study CPSI through the concept of ‘policy entrepreneurship’, defined as behaviours and practices of individuals who drive change. The study addresses an underexplored area of research: how policy entrepreneurship shapes policy design within the framework of Transformative Innovation Policy (TIP).
The research focuses on the Shared Agendas for Sustainability and Social Change initiative in Catalonia, a governance model that promotes collaborative innovation. This framework was launched by the Regional Government (Generalitat de Catalunya) to support the EU’s Smart Specialization Strategy of Catalonia (RIS3CAT 2030). It aims to tackle complex, place-based challenges such as climate change, pollution, inequality, waste of resources, unemployment and inequality.
Additionally, this research examines a pilot project from the previous RIS3CAT strategy(2015-2022): the Lleida’s Shared Agenda. This initiative responds to depopulation in Western Catalonia by aiming to transform the agri-food model into a green and circular economy.
While CPSI is often studied from a system-wide perspective, this paper shifts the focus to the micro-level of collaboration, showing how cross-sectoral public actors work together in designing policy. The research involves participants from universities, technology sectors, research centres, as well as local, supra-municipal, and regional government positions. The study particularly focuses on two policy entrepreneurs (PEs): a high-ranking civil servant with experience in regional public administration (RIS3CAT 2030 PE) and a technical expert on a temporary contract within a supramunicipal public administration (Lleida’s Shared-Agenda PE).
The study highlights how participants built long-term relationships through structured workshops and informal engagements over several years. Findings show that policy entrepreneurs significantly influence CPSI across different stages of the policy cycle by:
- reframing challenges using broader, systematic lenses;
- building shared visions;
- creating spaces for experimentation;
- embedding learning mechanisms into the policy process.
These strategies interact meaningfully with core policy design principles such as internal consistency, coherence, credibility, and comprehensiveness. They also reflect key TIP values such as commitment to experimentation, management of uncertainty, and the promotion of new values around the Shared Agendas approach.
The findings highlight the important role that certain individuals or small groups can play in the policy-making process. Their actions can inspire others engaged in designing and implementing transformative policies. The article positions CPSI as an ongoing process of collaboration, where public policy is continually redefined.
The study offers both conceptual insights and concrete strategies, linking CPSI with TIP approaches by showing how policy design is shaped through the collaborative actions of policy entrepreneurs. Importantly, the identified strategies are potentially transferable to other contexts where public administrations aim to advance CPSI through experimental, place-based approaches.
The paper can be accessed in full here
Authors: Acebillo-Baqué M., Velasco D., and Boni A.