From 25 to 28 August 2026, members of the SOS-GVC research team took part in the 65th ERSA Congress in Sofia, Bulgaria, contributing to discussions on regional development, trade vulnerabilities, global value chain reconfiguration, and the role of small firms in changing international production systems.
The team presented two papers:
1) The State and the Missing Middle: The Role of Mini-Multinationals in the Reconfiguration of Global Value Chains
Luigi Tredicine, Jacopo Canello, Gery Gereffi and Konstantin Wacker
Presented by Luigi Tredicine.
The paper was presented in the session “Regional Vulnerabilities and Trade Dependencies”, chaired by Giovanni Perucca.
2) Risk Prevention Strategies by Micro and Small Enterprises in Global Value Chain Reconfiguration: A Theoretical and Empirical Regional Perspective
Cristina Re, Jacopo Canello, Pietro Battiston and Mario Menegatti
Presented by Cristina Re in a session chaired by Marcus Dejardin.
The paper investigates how risk-prevention strategies adopted by micro and small subcontractors can shape downstream GVC reconfiguration, with particular attention to territorial spillovers and industrial districts. Combining a theoretical model with empirical evidence, the study highlights how the local context can reinforce the effects of firms’ strategies on international production dynamics.
