ABSTRACT
Eco-innovations leading to reduced environmental impacts or a reduction in material and energy use are being focused on by politicians because of both positive environmental and even economic effects. Eco-innovations help to remedy the negative external environmental effects of economic activities. Following the respective theoretical literature, in most cases, these negative external effects have to be internalized by regulation measures and the role of regulation as a determinant of eco-innovation is therefore crucial. The famous Porter hypothesis even goes a step further and postulates positive effects of environmental regulation on the innovation behaviour of the whole firm.
