Management Review ›› 2026, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (5): 56-66.

• Innovation and Entrepreneurship Management • Previous Articles    

The Innovation Ecosystem of Resource-based Cities in the Yellow River Basin: A Study of the Distribution of Resources

Zhang Guoxing1,2, Zhang Jingyu3, Hou Siyan1   

  1. 1. School of Management and Economics, North China University of Water Resources and Hydropower, Zhengzhou 450046;
    2. Research Center for Sustainable Development of Yellow River Basin Ecological and Economic Systems, North China University of Water Resources and Hydropower, Zhengzhou 450046;
    3. School of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Beijing 100191
  • Received:2024-10-24 Published:2026-06-06

Abstract: The Yellow River Basin, as an important ecological and economic region in China, plays a crucial role in promoting the transformation and upgrading of regional economy. Given the challenges from both resource depletion and environmental pressure, building an innovative ecosystem has become a key path for achieving high-quality development of resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin. Through fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis, this paper deeply explores the complex causal relationships of the innovative ecosystem in resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin. The research finds that the high-quality development of the innovative ecosystem in resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin is influenced by the synergy of multiple factors. The specific paths include:"low optimization - light governance type", that is, an adaptable development path where both industrial optimization, digitalization level, and environmental governance are at a relatively low level; "strong control - weak innovation type", a development path that compensates for the lack of technological innovation and digitalization under high government regulation, industrial optimization, and environmental governance; "high control - high governance type", an innovation-driven path that mitigates the negative effects of excessive population concentration through high government regulation, industrial optimization, and environmental governance; and "high development - low ecological type", a balanced development path with high technological innovation, high government regulation, and high digitalization level, but with relatively weak population aggregation and environmental governance. The study analyzes the collaborative mechanism of resource allocation in the construction of the innovative ecosystem, providing scientific references and practical inspirations for the sustainable development of resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin.

Key words: resource-based cities, innovation ecosystems, fsQCA paradigm, configuration path