Andrea Flori receives the award for a study analyzing how geographical proximity to academic research positively impacts CO₂ emissions.

The paper “Does proximity to academic research improve carbon abatement performance? Evidence from Italian EU ETS installations”,  by Andrea Flori, Associate Professor at POLIMI School of Management, Politecnico di Milano and Giovanni Marin, from Università degli Studi di Urbino Carlo Bo, received the Best Conference Paper Award at the 2026 R&D Management Conference, one of the leading international events dedicated to research on innovation, R&D management, and policies for technological transition.

The study analyses the impact of proximity to academic research on the CO₂ emission reduction performance of industrial firms. Using an innovative distance-weighted scientific output indicator — Scientific Output Distance-Weighted (SODW) — the research demonstrates that facilities subject to the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) benefit from the knowledge spillovers generated by local university ecosystems.

The results highlight the positive impact of proximity to universities on knowledge transfer, collaboration between public research and industry, and access to highly skilled human capital. This contributes significantly to industrial decarbonization processes. Notably, the local presence of scientific expertise in the low-carbon sector correlates with improved environmental performance at the plant level.

The issue addressed by the study is particularly relevant in the current context of accelerating European climate policies and growing attention to industrial competitiveness in the green transition. Against this backdrop, it is crucial to understand the mechanisms through which scientific knowledge translates into actual emissions reductions in order to design more effective, geographically targeted public policies.

This prestigious award recognizes the scientific contributions of the research, and highlights the POLIMI School of Management’s commitment to developing quantitative studies on ecological transition, innovation, and evidence-based industrial policies.