Search

• Community enterprises may play pivotal roles in sustainability transitions, yet are under-researched. • A conceptual framework of the upscaling processes of community enterprises is proposed. • As community enterprises scale up, institutional complexity may arise between the community, market, and corporate logics. • We formulate nine propositions on the sources of institutional complexity and possible managing mechanisms. • The framework is supported by empirical cases from carsharing and renewable energy. Community enterprises may play pivotal roles in sustainability transitions but have received limited attention in the transitions literature. This paper proposes a framework for theorising the challenges that community enterprises face as they scale up due to the rising institutional complexity of their organisational model, combining the institutional logics of community, market, and corporation. We conceptualise the upscaling processes of community enterprises by distinguishing between the community volunteerism phase, the niche creation phase and the niche expansion phase. We formulate nine propositions on how institutional complexity arises and on possible mechanisms to manage it in each phase of the upscaling process. Our theoretical framework is supported by empirical research on carsharing and renewable energy initiatives in Western Europe. The paper concludes with some avenues for further research on community enterprises in sustainability transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A constructive and nuanced discussion on the flaws of academic publishing is still lacking. • Such flaws are a symptom of a broader trend towards academic marketization. • We discuss the two dimensions of marketization: the transformation of academic output into marketable goods and the 'managerialization' of academia. • Sustainability research is especially vulnerable to marketization because of its broader set of values. • We discuss possible ways forward in terms of academic organizational structures, research methods and funding, and publishing outlets. Scholars have long called out the flaws in academic publishing. However, a nuanced and constructive discussion of this issue is still lacking. We advocate that these flaws are symptoms of broader and intensifying marketization of academic research. To address this, we first discuss the two dimensions of marketization: the commodification of academic output and the 'managerialization' of academic governance. We then argue that sustainability research is especially vulnerable to marketization trends because of its broader set of values that cannot merely be reflected in academic output. We illustrate these values by discussing the nature of the challenges faced by sustainability researchers, their relationships with non-academic stakeholders, and the intrinsic normativity of their research. We explore potential ways forward to reform existing academic organizational structures and research funding system, embrace more inclusive and democratic research approaches, and support the development of nonprofit open-access journals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]