The triple helix model

This chapter examines how cooperation between local government, academia, and business, the so-called triple helix, influences the capacity of European cities to sustain international partnerships with China. Originally developed to analyse innovation systems in knowledge-based societies (Etzkowitz & Leydesdorff, 1995), the triple helix model is applied here to the study of paradiplomacy, illustrating how synergy between the three sectors enhances a city's diplomatic reach. Drawing on survey data and qualitative interviews, the chapter identifies cities that successfully integrate universities and enterprises into their external relations and compares them with cases where collaboration remains weak or fragmented. It shows that cities with active triple helix networks, such as Duisburg (Germany) or Lodz (Poland), tend to achieve more durable and multidimensional relations with Chinese partners, while those lacking such coordination, like Linz (Austria), experience more selective and fragile cooperation. The chapter argues that the triple helix does not merely facilitate economic exchanges but creates an ecosystem in which knowledge, legitimacy, and resources circulate across sectors. In doing so, it broadens the analytical scope of paradiplomacy beyond institutional design, demonstrating that innovation dynamics can also explain variation in cities’ international performance.