Anna Butzin

Dr. Anna Butzin is a researcher in the Innovation, Space, and Culture research area at the Institute for Work and Technology (IAT), part of the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences. She also serves as a lecturer at the Faculty of Spatial Planning at TU Dortmund University since 2016, where she teaches urban and regional economics. Her academic career includes substitute professor positions at the University of Bayreuth (2018-2019) and the University of Kassel (2022-2023).

Dr. Butzin's research focuses on structural change and transformation in cities and regions, innovation and regional development, startup ecosystems, and the spatial dimensions of innovation processes. Her work particularly examines how entrepreneurial ecosystems can support development in lagging regions, with a focus on the Ruhr area in Germany. She has developed expertise in innovation biographies as a methodological approach to understanding knowledge dynamics in innovation processes from spatial and temporal perspectives.

Her current research projects include Engaging entrepreneurial ecosystems for the youth (Ecosys4you), The Regional Studies Association Research Network on Transformative Regions (TRAKR), and Industry analysis of bicycle production (BikeProd). Her publications and presentations consistently address themes of transformative knowledge, societal innovation capacity, and regional development strategies for structurally challenged regions.

Dr. Butzin's work has been recognized through various projects including the University Pearl of the Month award for the Ecosys4you project in September 2025. Her research demonstrates how entrepreneurial ecosystems can create tangible impacts in economically challenged regions like the Ruhr area, emphasizing the importance of success stories and visible startups for regional innovation.

She actively participates in numerous academic conferences and workshops, presenting on topics ranging from bicycle manufacturing networks to transformative knowledge capacities. Her methodological approach often involves innovation biographies to analyze knowledge generation in innovation processes across different spatial scales.