III. European (Local) Public Innovation Conference

26 – 28 May 2026

EsACT-IPB, Mirandela

INNlocal_IIIConferenceDownload

Date and Venue

The III European (Local) Public Innovation Conference will be held from 26 – 28 May 2026 at the School of Public Management, Communication and Tourism of Bragança Polytechnic University (EsACT-IPB) in Mirandela, Portugal, in a hybrid format.

Organisation

The Conference is organised within the scope of the Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnership INNlocal, coordinated by the Bragança Polytechnic University (IPB), in collaboration with:

  • Hochschule Bremen (Germany);
  • Silesian University in Opava (Czech Republic);
  • Fundação para os Estudos e Formação nas Autarquias Locais (Portugal);
  • Instituto Nacional de Administração, I.P. (Portugal).

Organising Committee

Forthcoming.

Scientific Committee

Forthcoming.

Conference Focus and Themes

Local governments across Europe face complex and rapidly changing societal, environmental, technological, and demographic challenges. INNlocal project aims to co-design training, tools, and innovative ecosystems to support mission-oriented innovation, future-oriented methodologies, and co-creation between academia, Local Public Administrations, civil society, and other stakeholders.

The III European (Local) Public Innovation Conference welcomes contributions that advance reflection, research, and practice in innovation in and through local governments, particularly related to the project’s three core thematic areas:

A. Diversity and Inclusion

Topics may include:

  • Inclusive governance and administration;
  • Equity, accessibility, and inclusive public service design;
  • Support for diverse communities;
  • Diversity, equity, and inclusion in public sector organisations;
  • Innovation addressing vulnerable or marginalised populations.

B. Environmental Sustainability

Topics may include:

  • Green transitions and climate-resilient local policies;
  • Eco-innovation in public services;
  • Circular economy initiatives in Municipalities;
  • Data-driven sustainability strategies;
  • Local innovation ecosystems for climate action.

C. Citizenship and Participation

Topics may include:

  • Co-creation, participatory governance, and democratic innovation;
  • Civic engagement and collaborative policymaking;
  • Digital participation tools and open government;
  • Transparency, trust, and accountability;
  • Community-driven innovation in public service delivery.

Cross-cutting themes may also include:

  • Mission-oriented and challenge-based innovation;
  • Digital transformation in local public administration;
  • Capacity-building, future skills, and micro-credentials;
  • HEI–municipality collaboration models;
  • Foresight and future-fit public sector capabilities;
  • Experimental governance and public sector learning ecosystems.

Submissions may be empirical, conceptual, methodological, applied, or practice-oriented, including prototypes, action research, or co-creation experiences.

Papers outside these core themes may also be accepted if they clearly contribute to innovation in and through local governments.

Contributions must be written in English, but presentations may be either in English or Portuguese.

Important Dates

Submission of Abstracts: 28 February 2026

Submission of Prototypes: 28 February 2026

Notification of acceptance: 4 April 2026

Final version of abstracts: 18 April 2026

Full paper submission (optional): 5 May 2026

Author registration deadline: 5 May 2026

Submission Guidelines

All submissions must be made through EasyChair (link forthcoming).

Format Requirements

  • Each file must be submitted in PDF format for the initial version, anonymised for double-blind review. After the review process, the revised version must be submitted in an editable Word format.
  • Use the official conference templates:

Authorship

  • Each participant may submit up to three contributions (abstract, prototype or full paper), individually or in co-authorship.
  • Each accepted submission must designate a corresponding author.

Review Process

Abstracts and prototypes will be evaluated through a double-blind peer review process conducted by members of the INNlocal Scientific Committee. Evaluation criteria include:

  • Relevance to conference themes;
  • Contribution to innovation in local public administration;
  • Originality;
  • Methodological quality or practical relevance;
  • Potential impact and transferability.

Registration

Accepted submissions will be included in the Conference programme only if at least one presenting author registers by 2026.

A participant may present a maximum of two contributions.

Registration details will be announced on this website.

Publication

All accepted and presented abstracts and prototypes will be published in the INNlocal Conference Abstracts e-Book and Conference Prototypes e-Book (digital format with ISBN).

Selected full papers may be invited for publication in special issues or edited volumes (details to be announced).

Program

Forthcoming.

Contact

For further information, please contact: innlocal@ipb.pt