The purpose of the workshop will be to explore the challenges and opportunities of the rapid digital transformation caused by the pandemic, focusing on islands. The focus will be on the ability to reconcile local traditions with the impact of technological innovations according to creative resilient models of sustainable development, which make it possible to reap the great benefits without losing the qualifying characteristics of the territories, but above all to make life easier for the local population.

The workshop will promote knowledge exchange between policymakers, researchers and citizens: it will bring together a group of experts with diverse backgrounds – from economics to social sciences, from regional development to data analytics – to present empirical findings and discuss policy responses and their current/potential implications for such accelerated digitalisation processes in a local context such as islands. Practical case studies will be presented to inspire interaction, look for possible opportunities, and try to answer the following questions:

• What is the role of (local) entrepreneurship in this process?
• What is the relationship between digital transformation of local ecosystems and sustainable development?
• The digital transition is a cornerstone of the NextGenerationEU: it is now crucial to steer the political and public debate towards a long-term vision that maximises the well-being of residents and local communities