Dr Esra Aydogdu is a Career Development Fellow at the Adam Smith Business School. She completed her PhD in 2023 at the University of Strathclyde Business School, within the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship, Strategy and Innovation, where she employed a qualitative research design to examine the impact of social innovation policies and programmes. She holds an MSc in Science and Technology Policy Studies from the Middle East Technical University and a BSc in Mathematics.

Her research profile reflects her interdisciplinary background and focuses on real-world challenges such as empowering marginalised groups, just sustainability transitions, and health and immigration issues, with a particular emphasis on policy formulation and evaluation.

Previously, Esra spent 15 years at the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey—the primary advisory body to the Turkish government on national science and technology policy, and the country’s leading research and funding institution. Her work focused primarily on designing and implementing national entrepreneurship programmes tailored to technology-based entrepreneurs. She was also actively involved in partnerships and knowledge exchange activities at both national and international levels. This included collaboration with higher education institutions, private and third sector organizations, and international partners such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), through initiatives like the Global Cleantech Innovation Programme, aimed at supporting cleantech innovation and entrepreneurship in developing economies.

Esra is a member of the School's Entrepreneurship, Development and Political Economy research cluster.

Areas of expertise:

• Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship
• Public Policy
• Empowerment
• Social Capital and Human Emotions
• Social Change
• Just Sustainability Transitions
• Community Development

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Prior publications

Enhancing Women’s Health Through Empowerment - £8K funding from Glasgow Crucible 2024, led by Research Services Directorate, University of Glasgow.

• Professional Entrepreneurial Practice
• Business Start-Up
• Strategic Innovation Management
• Managing Innovation