ABSTRACT
While the concept of environmental policy appears to be regulation-oriented at the macro-policy level in the EU, at the regional level within the EU, management support programmes are being developed to help SMEs enhance their competitiveness through improved eco-efficiency. These programmes aim to reduce environmental impacts and strengthen competitiveness by supporting SMEs’ own efforts to reduce their environmental impacts, rather than forcing them to comply with government policies. This is classified as a diffusion of innovation-oriented policy.
The purpose of this chapter is to identify the meaning of partnerships and the regional system, including the role of the public sector through the activities of regional entities such as intermediary organizations and agents who are the programme actors. The focus of the discussion will be on organizational management and consulting programmes.
This chapter discusses and compares the cases of two environmental programmes: the Efficiency Agency (EFA) in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), Germany, and EcoBusiness Wien (EBW) in Vienna, Austria. Both programmes consist of a variety of elements, including resource efficiency, workshops, financial instruments, consulting systems, multifaceted partnerships and celebrating success.
