Business School looking to join a consortium or propose a project together

IÉSEG School of Management is a French higher education and research institution with campuses in Lille and Paris. Its researchers are strongly involved in interdisciplinary and international research on sustainability transitions, circular economy, territorial development, innovation, governance and responsible management. Research in economics and management is closely connected to LEM – Lille Économie Management (UMR CNRS 9221), a joint research unit of the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS).

For the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership, IÉSEG can contribute particular expertise at the intersection of circular economy, economic geography, regional and urban development, environmental management and territorial governance.

Our research examines how sustainability and circular economy transitions are shaped by the characteristics of places. We are particularly interested in understanding why new circular activities emerge and become embedded in some cities and regions while remaining fragmented or difficult to scale in others. This includes research on territorial circular ecosystems, circular business models, productive activities, resource and value-chain reconfiguration, spatial and institutional conditions, territorial intermediation, local governance, public policy and stakeholder coordination.

A particular strength is the analysis of the relationships between firms, public authorities, intermediary organisations and territorial resources. Our work investigates how these actors collectively create the conditions for circular production, how local and regional capabilities influence transition pathways, and how public policies and institutional arrangements can facilitate or constrain change.

We can contribute to DUT projects through a combination of quantitative, spatial and qualitative approaches, including comparative European analyses, regional and urban datasets, econometric and spatial analysis, surveys, interviews, comparative case studies, policy analysis and stakeholder co-creation. We are also interested in approaches that connect large-scale comparative evidence with detailed analysis of selected cities and urban regions.

For Circular Urban Economies, our main interests include circular urban production, territorial circular ecosystems, productive cities, circular business ecosystems, repair, reuse and remanufacturing activities, circular value chains, resource circulation, public procurement, intermediary organisations, spatial planning and the governance of circular transitions.

We are also interested in the wider consequences of urban sustainability transitions, including regional resilience, employment and skills, social inclusion, territorial inequalities and the capacity of different places to benefit from environmental transformation.

IÉSEG researchers have experience participating in and coordinating European and international collaborative research projects, working with universities, municipalities, regional authorities, businesses, intermediary organisations and civil-society actors. We are particularly interested in research designs in which public and non-academic partners contribute to problem definition, data access, interpretation of findings and the co-development of policy-relevant knowledge.

Located in Lille, within one of France’s largest metropolitan and former industrial regions, IÉSEG also offers a particularly relevant territorial setting for research on industrial transformation, productive urban spaces, circular economy, regeneration and sustainable urban development.

For the DUT Call 2026, we are particularly open to cooperation under Circular Urban Economies, especially CUE Topic 3 – Rethinking urban production for circular and resilient cities, as well as relevant cross-cutting projects and connections with neighbourhood economies and place-based urban transitions.

We are interested in collaborating with universities, municipalities and metropolitan authorities, circular economy intermediaries, business and industry organisations, SMEs, urban planning actors and European city networks seeking expertise in circular economy, territorial transitions, economic geography and urban/regional governance.