en تخصصي Special پژوهشي Research <div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="font-family:Source Sans Pro;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="line-height:107%">Implementing innovation districts as the next generation of Areas of Innovation (AOIs) is a global trend. This phenomenon emerged from university, technology, and innovation studies, as well as urban development notions. However, there are ambiguities regarding the shaping process, components, and necessary elements. Thus, a framework for innovation district implementation and development issues is necessary. This research aims to provide a comprehensive framework for implementing innovation districts under the anchor approach based on a university. The methodology adopted a two-step process: a systematic review to shape innovation district notions and a grounded theory approach using fourteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews. One hundred ten additional sources were also added to reach content saturation for a precise and complete insight into the innovation district shaping process. The concluded framework comprises four interconnected layers representing the anchor level (University), knowledge-based society, knowledge-based urban development (KBUD), and knowledge ecosystem. The findings also reveal the anchor institute&#39;s roles, interactions, and tasks to build an innovation district. Additionally, this study reveals the indispensable transformation of the ecosystem generator actor (Anchor Institute) to shape the innovation district. These findings provide a comprehensive insight for HEI managers, policymakers, businesses, urban researchers, and economy activists.</span></span></span></span></div> Innovation District, Ecosystem, University, Anchor Approach, Knowledge-Based Urban Development (KBUD) 29 51 http://johepal.com/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Amir Asgari 10031947532846001174 10031947532846001174 Yes Allameh Tabataba'i University Ali Khorsandi Taskoh 10031947532846001175 10031947532846001175 No Allameh Tabataba'i University Saeed Ghiasi Nodooshan 10031947532846001176 10031947532846001176 No Allameh Tabataba'i University