Michael Wyrwich

Michael Wyrwich is a Full Professor of Entrepreneurship and Regional Development at the University of Groningen's Faculty of Economics and Business. He holds adjunct lecturer positions at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and serves as Program Coordinator for the MSc BA Small Business & Entrepreneurship program. His research focuses on the historical, cultural, and institutional roots of entrepreneurship and regional development, with emphasis on post-socialist economies and long-term structural changes.

• Principal Investigator for the MOD-BLOCK-DDR project (2018-2023), analyzing East German innovation legacies
• EU-Interreg SIRM project (2023-2027) addressing refugee integration challenges
• Editor of Small Business Economics (since 2019) and Review of Regional Research editorial board member (since 2017)

Research interests include:

• Entrepreneurial ecosystems' historical foundations
• Roman-era influences on modern economic behavior
• Socialist innovation systems in Eastern Europe
• Regional policy design for inclusive development

Recent publications analyze Roman cultural impacts on German regional well-being, East-West German innovation dynamics, and long-term entrepreneurial legacies. He has been awarded the EPAINOS Award (2016) for outstanding contributions in regional science.