Exploring Innovation Dynamics in Adopting and Scaling Nature-Inclusive Fibre Crops for Biobased Construction in Utrecht

Abstract

The urgent need to decarbonise the built environment and reduce agricultural externalities has drawn growing interest in biobased construction materials. Nature-inclusive fibre crops such as hemp, flax and miscanthus offer dual potential: replacing carbon-intensive materials and delivering ecosystem benefits. Yet despite technical viability and pilot enthusiasm, regional upscaling remains limited. This thesis examines how innovation dynamics influence the adoption and scaling of fibre crops for construction in the Dutch province of Utrecht and what implications these transitions have for ecosystem services. To address this question, the research integrates three frameworks: Technological Innovation Systems (TIS) to assess systemic functions and barriers; Strategic Niche Management (SNM) to analyse actor alignment and protected experimentation; and the Ecosystem Services Framework (ESF) to evaluate ecological value and spatial crop suitability. The study applies a qualitative case study approach combining eighteen semi-structured interviews with twenty-one stakeholders, spatial crop-climate analysis and document review. Findings reveal that critical TIS functions, such as market formation, guidance of the search and resource mobilisation, remain fragmented or obstructed. Niche-level experimentation is active, but lacks institutional anchoring and structured learning. Ecosystem benefits such as carbon sequestration and biodiversity support are frequently mentioned yet not structurally rewarded in policies or markets. Spatial analysis shows that crop suitability varies across the province, reinforcing the need for territorially grounded transition strategies. The thesis contributes to the literature in three ways. First, it extends the TIS framework to a landbased, multifunctional context, bridging agriculture and construction. Second, it shows how SNM processes can compensate for weak system functions by building trust, shared visions and networked learning. Third, it integrates ecosystem service logic into innovation system analysis, demonstrating how ecological externalities shape transition potential. The study recommends systemic instruments that align ecological valuation, financial incentives and spatial governance. These include regional off-take contracts, carbon accounting standards, chain governance platforms and biobased procurement incentives. Ultimately, the thesis argues that fibre crop transitions require integrated governance approaches that cut across value chains, ecological zones and institutional layers, redefining not only what we build, but how we grow the systems that support it.