This paper identifies the theoretical issues for universities to take on the role of creating value in local areas and building business ecosystems, and indicates the conditions under which they can be built. Universities are positioned as actors with weak ties. The conditions are, first, that universities share the issues of companies and local governments, and, further, that they must implement educational programs that foster the ability to identify and solve those issues. Second, universities must design value (profits) to solve the issues of local areas and companies. This involves building a system that encourages active support from students by consulting with universities about the issues of local areas and companies. This will lead to the development of human resources who can solve local problems.

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This study investigates how the “internal consciousness” of 58 entrepreneurs, who started busi-nesses in the coastal disaster areas of Iwate Prefecture affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and received policy support measures (from 2013 to 2015), and the connecting behaviors among these entrepreneurs within their community dynamically change, chain, and spread, leading to their growth. The bonds that form this community are not based on “trust” but rather on (1) shared cir-cumstances in facing entrepreneurship, (2) a sense of attachment to the region, and (3) expectations for new business developments. The individual connecting behaviors evolve by involving sur-rounding collaborators, leading to new structures and orders. To promote such connections, the formation of a “shared sense” as a community and mechanisms for “individual autonomous and free connections” are effective.

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This study focuses on 58 entrepreneurs who started businesses in the coastal disaster areas of Iwate Prefecture affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake, with policy support measures from 2013 to 2015. It individually clarifies the “entrepreneurial motives and beliefs (internal conscious-ness)” and “orientation towards mutual connections among entrepreneurs” by closely engaging with each entrepreneur. While 20% of the entrepreneurs are driven by self-fulfillment, another 20% are conscious of their involvement with the community, such as contributing to regional development. The majority, 60%, possess both motivations. These entrepreneurs play a role not only in the re-gional economy but also in improving living conditions, community society, and cultural life in the region’s recovery and revitalization. Additionally, as a collective, 75% of the entrepreneur’s find mutual connections effective for promoting and sustaining their businesses. These connections are characterized not by “trust” or “shared experiences of the disaster,” but by unique structures such as (1) the same circumstances faced in starting a business, (2) a commitment to the region, and (3) expectations for new business developments.

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