Table 3 Cross-case synthesis of... | Emerald Publishing

Table 3

Cross-case synthesis of micro-innovation mechanisms across the three cases

Mechanism	Sorrento Saggia (Italy)	Renew towns lab – Edgerton (USA)	Youth4Innovation – Connect4Climate (global)
Reframing	Youth reframed tourism from a consumer-oriented model to a “temporary citizenship” paradigm, shifting governance discourse toward rights, responsibilities and shared stewardship	Students reframed heritage assets from nostalgic relics to future-oriented community resources, enabling new narratives of opportunity rather than decline	Youth applied systems thinking to reframe climate-urban challenges as interconnected leverage-point systems, generating alternative conceptualizations compared to expert-driven models
Boundary-spanning collaboration	Students acted as intermediaries between municipality, residents and businesses, creating new relational channels in a previously siloed governance environment	Youth connected local officials, business owners and residents, forming an emergent governance network around heritage regeneration	The workshop created a temporary global “civic lab,” linking youth from diverse contexts with experts, policymakers and practitioners
Iterative learning loops	Co-design workshops produced cycles of testing, feedback and refinement, embedding learning into the municipal decision process	Rapid prototyping (visualizations, concept sketches) enabled low-risk experimentation and iterative adjustment of ideas with community input	Systems-thinking exercises and rapid ideation generated iterative cycles of mapping, critique and redesign, functioning as a micro-innovation incubator
Resulting micro-innovations	New governance narrative; participatory tools integrated into municipal practice; enhanced intergenerational dialogue	New interpretive frames for heritage; emergent collaborative routines; low-cost prototypes guiding future planning	Novel governance ideas (youth advisory boards, storytelling platforms); new systemic representations; cross-cultural solution pathways
Systemic implications	Process innovation in tourism governance; strengthened civic capacity	Activation of latent community assets; formation of a proto-governance network	Diffusion of youth-generated insights into global climate discourse; scalable participatory models

Mechanism	Sorrento Saggia (Italy)	Renew towns lab – Edgerton (USA)	Youth4Innovation – Connect4Climate (global)
Reframing	Youth reframed tourism from a consumer-oriented model to a “temporary citizenship” paradigm, shifting governance discourse toward rights, responsibilities and shared stewardship	Students reframed heritage assets from nostalgic relics to future-oriented community resources, enabling new narratives of opportunity rather than decline	Youth applied systems thinking to reframe climate-urban challenges as interconnected leverage-point systems, generating alternative conceptualizations compared to expert-driven models
Boundary-spanning collaboration	Students acted as intermediaries between municipality, residents and businesses, creating new relational channels in a previously siloed governance environment	Youth connected local officials, business owners and residents, forming an emergent governance network around heritage regeneration	The workshop created a temporary global “civic lab,” linking youth from diverse contexts with experts, policymakers and practitioners
Iterative learning loops	Co-design workshops produced cycles of testing, feedback and refinement, embedding learning into the municipal decision process	Rapid prototyping (visualizations, concept sketches) enabled low-risk experimentation and iterative adjustment of ideas with community input	Systems-thinking exercises and rapid ideation generated iterative cycles of mapping, critique and redesign, functioning as a micro-innovation incubator
Resulting micro-innovations	New governance narrative; participatory tools integrated into municipal practice; enhanced intergenerational dialogue	New interpretive frames for heritage; emergent collaborative routines; low-cost prototypes guiding future planning	Novel governance ideas (youth advisory boards, storytelling platforms); new systemic representations; cross-cultural solution pathways
Systemic implications	Process innovation in tourism governance; strengthened civic capacity	Activation of latent community assets; formation of a proto-governance network	Diffusion of youth-generated insights into global climate discourse; scalable participatory models