Abstract
European policy promotes a "triple transition”, integrating digital innovation, ecological sustainability (green policy goals), and social inclusion in development initiatives. Cultural and creative industries (‘CCIs’) can be pivotal in this process, given their societal role beyond the production of products and services and their ability to shape responses to ubiquitous challenges. The objective of this study is examining how institutional mandates interact with organic innovation dynamics in the CCIs regarding the simultaneous integration of all three policy pillars in creative projects. We use data on 5,601 initiatives from the EU's Creative Europe program (2013-2024) as a natural experiment. As of 2021, Creative Europe’s calls for proposals have begun suggesting the inclusion of all three pillars of the triple transition in funded creative projects. This policy shift enables the comparison of pre- and post-mandate trends. Results reveal an intrinsic upward trajectory in projects with simultaneous digital, green and social goals (i.e. ‘triple-pillar’ projects), even before the shift. This pattern persisted after 2021 as well. However, the mandate substituted for other catalysts like international collaboration. Pre-2021, multi-country partnerships significantly predicted triple-focus within projects. Post-2021 however, this link vanished as even local projects complied with Creative Europe’s suggestions. Instead, larger project budgets and grants emerged as key enablers, indicating a trade-off in cost efficiency. Mandated comprehensiveness required greater resources for implementation. Our findings therefore underscore that policy can reinforce bottom-up creativity. However, it reshapes processes, potentially burdening smaller actors. To maximise policy impact, mandates should pair with funding support and flexibility.