Awards at RENT 2026
The following awards will be presented at RENT 2026. If you would like your paper to be considered for an award, you can select the category during the final submission process.
2026 J.M. Veciana Best paper Award for a Junior Researcher
Following the tradition, there will be an Award for the best paper written and presented by a junior researcher at the RENT conference. The award has been named in honour of Professor José Maria Veciana, ECSB’s First Fellow and long time member who was a dedicated supporter of junior researchers throughout his professional life.
To be eligible for this award, the paper must be authored by a student, a phd student or a junior researcher who has finalised his/her phd thesis within the past five years preceding the conference. Only papers which have been presented at the RENT conference will be considered. Preferably, papers are solely authored or co-authored with one or two junior researchers. In the case of co-authorship with a senior researcher, the junior researcher will have to be lead author and sole presenter.
The prize includes a free attendance to 3E or RENT Conference within two years of the award and €250. The Scientific Committee will be responsible for selecting finalists and identifying the best paper(s). The award may be split between two prize-winning papers.
ISBJ Best paper award
The International Small Business Journal (ISBJ) gives an award for the best paper challenging the conventional wisdom in Entrepreneurship. The award prize is 250 euro. The award may be split between two prize-winning papers.
ERD Best Paper Award in honour of Alistair Anderson
As a leading entrepreneurship scholar, former editor of Entrepreneurship & Regional Development and an ISBE fellow, Alistair Anderson promoted a perspective on entrepreneurship strongly attached to a social science perspective of entrepreneuring - conceptualized as a socially embedded process and a set of practice(s). To celebrate Alistair’s legacy, Entrepreneurship & Regional Development Journal offers a Best Paper Award to honour his contribution to the field of entrepreneurship. To be eligible for this award, the paper must be lead authored by an early-career researcher, who has either recently completed the PhD or is about to complete their degree. The article submitted and presented at RENT Conference will be influenced by Alistair’s work, and will offer a strong theoretical contribution to our understanding of entrepreneurship as a social phenomenon. The Entrepreneurship & Regional Development Editorial board will select the finalists and the best paper winner. The prize-winning paper will be offered a fast-track opportunity for publication in ERD and mentoring from the ERD editorial team.
Best Paper Award on Entrepreneurship in Fast-Changing Worlds
The Antwerp Centre for Entrepreneurship Research (AntwerpCER) will give an award for the best paper in the context of the Conference theme. The award prize is 300 euro.
Best Reviewer Nominees
Based on the review reports three reviewers will be selected for the award “Best Reviewer Nominee at RENT 2026”.