The project PN-III-P4-PCE-2021-1878, PNCDI III: „Institutions, digitalization and regional development in the European Union” was implemented within the Research Center in International Relations and European Studies (CCREISE - https://eeris.eu/ERIF- 2000-000F-4094), at the „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iași It aimed to capitalize on and enhance the university’s multidisciplinary research capabilities in the specialized areas covered by the project topics. The project aim was to contribute to a better understanding of the interdependencies between institutions (formal and informal) and digitalization from the perspective of smart governance challenges and the dynamics of the center-periphery structural differentiations in regional development, with the goal of providing new theoretical frameworks, methods and tools for public policies for digitalization enhancing and for promoting an inclusive digital society. The project was coordinated by prof.univ.dr. Gabriela Carmen Pascariu and involved a team of16 professors and researchers (experienced, post-doctoral and doctoral students) from the fields of economics, statistics, human geography, law, regional and urban development, sociology, political science, and European studies. The results were concretized in new theoretical models,  methodological approaches, empirical research, public policy recommendations, and new urban governance tools. Thirty papers were published in WoS indexed journals (of which 17 papers in Q1 and Q2 journals), two special issues in  ESCI-indexed journals, four book chapters, and one conference volume. Fifty-six papers were presented at 34 international conferences.Numerous debates, conferences and special sessions were organized, and new international collaborations were developed. The implementation of the project led to the establishment and strengtheningpole of excellence in interdisciplinary researches in the field of regional and urban development, providing support for reducing  competitive gaps of Romanian research and fostering future international collaborations in education and research.