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Entrepreneurial Cultural Ecosystems in Rural Contexts: Some Insights from Rural Cultural Centers in France

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Cultural Initiatives for Sustainable Development

Part of the book series: Contributions to Management Science ((MANAGEMENT SC.))

Abstract

The debate on cultural entrepreneurship and sustainable development seems to be related mainly to urban spaces, leaving reflections on its role for sustainable development of rural territories rather under-explored. However, there are significant examples of cultural entrepreneurial initiatives in rural areas; the topic seems therefore promising and needs further investigation. The aim of this chapter is to fill this research gap, focusing on a specific type of rural cultural entrepreneurship: the creation of cultural centers in rural territories.

The authors carried out a qualitative empirical investigation based on two significant case studies of rural cultural centers located in the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in France. The case studies were analyzed according to the case study methodology identified by Yin (2015), based on the triangulation of multiple sources of information.

The results underline that these cultural centers thrived in rural areas, thanks to the creation of site-specific cultural entrepreneurial ecosystems, based on the nurturing of peculiar characteristics related to elements that were both endogenous and exogenous to the territory.

The research highlighted the peculiarities of cultural centers in rural territories and the characteristics of their ecosystems, providing insights into a promising phenomenon and contributing to the debate on the need for a more balanced development between urban and rural regions.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See, for example, the Sustainable Development Goals 4 (quality education) and 11 (sustainable cities and communities).

  2. 2.

    Rural areas are defined in opposition to urban areas and are characterized by a low population density and small settlements. According to urban–rural typology statistics (EUROSTAT 2016), rural areas are “all areas outside urban clusters. “Urban clusters” are clusters of contiguous grid cells of 1 km2 with a density of at least 300 inhabitants per km2 and a minimum population of 5000”.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CEREN, EA 7477 – Burgundy School of Business, Université Bourgogne Franche Comté, Besançon, France

    Elena Borin & Cassandre Jolivet

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  1. Elena Borin
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  2. Cassandre Jolivet
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Correspondence to Elena Borin .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Business Studies, Roma Tre University, Roma, Italy

    Paola Demartini , Lucia Marchegiani  & Michela Marchiori ,  & 

  2. Department of Mathematics, Computer Sciences and Economics, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Italy

    Giovanni Schiuma

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Borin, E., Jolivet, C. (2021). Entrepreneurial Cultural Ecosystems in Rural Contexts: Some Insights from Rural Cultural Centers in France. In: Demartini, P., Marchegiani, L., Marchiori, M., Schiuma, G. (eds) Cultural Initiatives for Sustainable Development. Contributions to Management Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65687-4_15

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