Acceleration programs can have an effect on business advancement prospects by offering access to mentors and information, capacity building, connections and networks with corporates and startups, all of which contribute to increasing the chances of entrepreneurial success. This study explores the effectiveness of an acceleration program, implemented in the cross-border region of Greece–Albania, where there are limited similar business support initiatives. The survey conducted among participants in the acceleration program aimed at identifying key elements that can contribute to shaping entrepreneurial potential in the cross-border region offering preliminary insight to policy makers in designing relevant business support measures. There is common consensus among both cross-border populations that the acceleration program has helped them develop their business ideas. The study reveals the different types of business weaknesses the acceleration program helped to address in the two populations and key criteria perceived to be contributing to business development. However, acceleration programs effectiveness is affected not only by criteria internal to business and the markets but also by the entrepreneurial ecosystem conditions pertaining. In this respect, business acceleration program designs should be tailored to address particularities in the entrepreneurial environment so as to be effective and contribute to business growth.

The present study explores the process of Greece’s current decarbonisation transition and its energy policy regarding the country’s two coal-mining areas. Using the Region of Western Macedonia as a case study, we aimed at providing a holistic approach—as until now only few attempts have been made to systematise the ‘Just Transition Plans’ in European Union (EU)—for raising awareness on issues related to water resource management in post-lignite areas and analysing the use of hydropower in Greece. Our research draws on a flexible method approach, serving as a tool to identify gaps in current knowledge and practices, based on two stages—first the analysis of existing literature, reviews, and sources from government’s core strategies, as well as policy and decision-making papers, and then formulating research questions by synthesising relevant data. In Greece, both ‘Just Transition Development Plan of Lignite Areas’ and hydropower production practices overlook water resources management. By summarising our findings and identifying gaps that remain in current approaches, this work indicates future directions by suggesting processes necessary for addressing the complex issue of adoption of sustainable water resources management measures in post-lignite eras in accordance with EU’s water policy.

Green governance is an emerging field, attracting increasing attention from scholars, and governments have been using a range of policy tools to support the transition to green economy, including regulation; financial incentives; voluntary agreements; fiscal measures; public sector procurement; targeting to the deployment of clean energy technologies. Greece has little experience in developing comprehensive long-term energy and climate strategies; thus, it is imperative that governance and analytical underpinning of long-term energy and climate planning be improved, and investment needs and innovative financing instruments for clean energy technologies analysed. To investigate the critical issue of state and entrepreneurship synergies in the framework of the green economy, the present survey employed a web-based questionnaire distributed to 417 small and medium sized enterprises in Western Macedonia from September to December 2021. Data analysis involved an exploratory factor and logistic regression analysis, creating a statistical model with three independent factors describing basic tools of the green economy. The results showed that, in Greece, state environmental governance is often perceived as inadequate, scarce, or constrained by considerations of economic growth. In addition, the research indicates that government policies with regards to environmental law implementation are mainly restricted to the "command and control" regulatory model, which fails to address green innovation and entrepreneurship and promote synergies between the private sector and the State. The analyses demonstrate that if government revenues are heavily reliant on taxes and fines, their capacity to finance structural adjustment programs can be severely affected, and alternative approaches are necessary to achieve the green growth.

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions represent a core driver of climate change, environmental degradation, and quality of life, closely associated with human-related activities. The European Union (EU) has set ambitious emissions reduction targets and introduced various frameworks to its members, including Greece, to achieve specific objectives that involve establishing robust emissions estimating mechanisms. The present study examines a period of approximately 6 decades (1965–2023) to analyze the impact of key indicators of the CO₂ emissions in Greece. To explore the relationships between CO₂ emissions, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), urbanization, and Renewable Energy Sources (RES), the research employs Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression as the primary analytical tool. The analysis demonstrates a strong explanatory power (R² = 0.918), highlighting that an increase in real GDP is associated with a substantial rise in CO₂ emissions, indicating a strong positive long-run relationship between economic activity and environmental pressure. Similarly, a 1% increase in urbanization is associated with an additional 1.5–2 million tons of annual emissions; conversely, a 1% growth in the share of RES contributes to a reduction of approximately 4.5 million tons of CO₂. Overall, the findings and methodological approach underscore the critical role of renewable energy adoption and provide a comprehensive framework for assessing and formulating environmental policies and strategies. The main contribution of this paper is its long-run econometric evaluation of CO₂ emissions in Greece. It uses variables related to the economy, society, and the energy transition, yielding results that can inform policymakers’ national decarbonization strategies and broader environmental protection efforts.

This study investigates thermal stress and energy-related anxiety as lived, multidimensional manifestations of energy poverty in Western Macedonia, Greece, a coal phase-out region undergoing just transition. Using a 261-household survey, we construct a thermal stress index from four Likert-type items capturing seasonal thermal adequacy, energy anxiety, and restricted use of rooms. High thermal stress is defined as the upper quartile of the index. Descriptive results indicate that high thermal stress affects 27.2% of households, exceeding a 20% threshold, while energy-related anxiety and restricted room use are widespread. We then estimate logistic regression models to examine whether vulnerability characteristics (disability-related thermal/electric needs, single parenthood, dependent children, benefit receipt, elderly presence), financial stress indicators (arrears, energy debt, frequent forced reductions in consumption), and socio-economic controls (income, employment, tenure, age, gender) predict high thermal stress. Adjusted models show that vulnerability markers do not retain statistically independent associations once controls are included. In contrast, tenure and energy-related financial stress are significantly associated with the probability of high thermal stress. The findings highlight the importance of measurement choices and suggest that experiential indicators capture energy-poverty dynamics that are not reducible to income-based targeting, with implications for just-transition policy design and energy justice.

This paper is related to Greece’s water policy as it was formulated after the incorporation of Water Framework Directive (WFD) 2000/60. We examined the status and evolution of constitutional provisions for the protection and management of water resources spanning from the first Greek Constitution of 1843 up to the current constitutional text of 1975 as formulated in 2008 with the incorporation of its third revision. In parallel, we investigated the Greek water pricing legal framework in accordance with Article 9 "Recovery of costs for water services" of the WFD. We compared the actual rates of water services as set by Municipal Water Supply Sewerage Companies (DEYAs) operating in 11 cities across Greece. The findings reveal that there are considerable problems and delays in the implementation of WFD. Regarding municipal water pricing policies, we concluded that DEYAs do not follow a unified and structured pricing scheme. Furthermore, several companies do not discriminate between data costs either per service (water supply, sewerage) or per use (water supply, irrigation, etc.). Finally, it is evident that none of them has yet adopted the relevant provisions set by the European directive for full cost recovery and water pricing reflecting financial, environmental and water resources costs.