Circular economy (CE) is the way forward to protect an endangered environment, promote social justice, and advance sustainable and balanced regional economic development. The proliferation of the CE concept and the circular startup (CSU) boom coincides with digital transformation, a socioeconomic change propelled by the widespread adoption of digital technologies. This paper uses a systems theory perspective to study the digital entrepreneurial ecosystem's (DEE) role in CSU formation. Fuzzy‐set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) is used to empirically explore the configurational recipes for the presence and absence of a high CSU formation rate. The results reveal that for a high CSU formation, DEE elements, such as digital protection and access, act as critical drivers, while other DEE elements take on a supportive role. The findings also show the complementarity effects, substitution effects, and neutral permutations of DEE elements among the configurations.

中文翻译：

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循环经济初创企业和数字创业生态系统

循环经济（CE）是保护濒危环境、促进社会正义、促进区域经济可持续平衡发展的出路。CE概念的扩散和循环创业（CSU）的繁荣与数字化转型相一致，数字化转型是数字技术广泛采用推动的社会经济变革。本文采用系统论的视角来研究数字创业生态系统 (DEE) 在 CSU 形成中的作用。模糊集定性比较分析 (fsQCA) 用于实证探索是否存在高 CSU 形成率的配置方案。结果表明，对于高 CSU 形成而言，数字保护和访问等 DEE 要素是关键驱动因素，而其他 DEE 要素则发挥支持作用。研究结果还显示了配置之间 DEE 元素的互补效应、替代效应和中性排列。