Volume 8, Issue 1 e70083
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Sustainable Development: Prioritizing Attributes and Validating Factors for the Success of Green Startups in Brazilian and German Entrepreneurial Ecosystems

Arthur Yassine Oliveira

Arthur Yassine Oliveira

Department of Aeronautical Engineering, São Carlos School of Engineering (EESC) - University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, Brazil

Search for more papers by this author
Jéssica Alves Justo Mendes

Corresponding Author

Jéssica Alves Justo Mendes

Department of Production Engineering, São Carlos School of Engineering (EESC) - University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, Brazil

Correspondence:

Jéssica Alves Justo Mendes ([email protected]; [email protected])

Search for more papers by this author
Lucas Gabriel Zanon

Lucas Gabriel Zanon

Department of Production Engineering, São Carlos School of Engineering (EESC) - University of São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, Brazil

Search for more papers by this author
Mateus Cecílio Gerolamo

Mateus Cecílio Gerolamo

Department of Economics, Management and Sociology - College of Agriculture (ESALQ) - University of São Paulo (USP), Piracicaba, Brazil

Search for more papers by this author
Vânia Gomes Zuin Zeidler

Vânia Gomes Zuin Zeidler

Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Luneburg, Germany

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 16 March 2025
Citations: 1

Funding: This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - Brasil (CAPES) - Finance Code 001 and by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP), Process n° 2022/15377-1.

ABSTRACT

This research investigates the relationship between cultural, social, and material attributes within entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) and their influence on the success of green startups, focusing specifically on comparative analyses between Brazilian and German contexts. Through a detailed examination involving the fuzzy cognitive maps (FCMs) and the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM), the study validates factors critical for fostering green startups. The research findings highlight the importance of business strategies that are culturally congruent and environmentally beneficial, focused on the unique characteristics of each ecosystem. In Germany, strategies emphasizing technological innovation align with a pragmatic environmental ethos, whereas in Brazil, community involvement and social innovation are more crucial. The study's methodological approach integrates expert opinions to prioritize the attributes that significantly impact green startups, revealing that strategic alignment with external ecosystem factors such as investment access, regulatory environments, and specialized talent is vital for startup survival and growth. However, the research faces limitations due to its geographic focus, potential expert bias, dynamic ecosystem characteristics, and the qualitative nature of data collection. These limitations suggest areas for further research, including expanding geographic scope and incorporating quantitative methods to enhance the robustness of findings. Overall, this study contributes to the understanding of how tailored business strategies, which can be developed through the analysis of the attributes and factors presented in this study, can support sustainable economic development in EEs contexts.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.