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Desmet, Gumpert, and Ortίn have analyzed regional development using the Ricardian model or the Heckscher–Ohlin theorem. However, aspects such as consideration of combined wages, substitution elasticities, marginal costs, fixed costs, and number of companies were completely ignored. This study investigates the underdevelopment of regions in light of Krugman's core–peripheral model. The extension of the model is intended to analyze the aspects that have so far been ignored and their influence on the benefits of the two regions. The following aspects characterize the model. Two regions with two sectors are considered for the model. The regions are characterized by different technological equipment. The first region is industrial. The second region has an agricultural character. When a new technology is available, both regions can benefit under certain conditions. The financial transfers lead to a convergence of wages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the issue of environmental awareness in the regions of the Russian Federation. For this purpose, an index of environmental awareness at regional level is derived as a latent variable from various categories of search entries in Yandex, the prominent Russian search engine, during two periods in the years 2014 and 2015. The frequency of these search requests presumably depends on certain economic and socio‐economic causes, which are integrated into the model for further investigation. The relation between regional wealth and environmental awareness is thereby of particular interest. The multiple indicators‐multiple (MIMIC) causes model allows us to estimate an index of environmental awareness and to rank the Russian regions according to this index. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International courts (ICs) have not only been specifying States' duties, but have also contributed to the definition of States themselves. The article focuses on the case-law of three ICs: the International Court of Justice qua generalist international law court, and its making of the 'internationalised State'; the European Court of Human Rights qua regional human rights court, and its moulding of the 'democratic State'; and the Court of Justice of the European Union qua court of a regional economic organisation, and its making of the 'managerial State'. The first part assesses the role of ICs in the development of the international law of statehood. The second part identifies the making of the State in the three ICs' case-law and compares the ways in which statehood is actually performed through international jurisprudence. A third part presents three critiques of the contemporary international jurisprudence of statehood and explores ways to reform it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What kinds of governance agendas emerge at frontiers of commercial expansion, where routine economic relations traverse differences of ethnicity and degrees of formality? In the Balim Valley in the highlands of Indonesia's easternmost Papua province, mobilities and trade intersect at adjoining peri-urban markets and minivan terminals. The 'terminal economy' at the edges of Wamena, the region's bustling hub, is a threshold between rural and urban life, where indigenous livelihoods are subordinated to Indonesia's expanding commercial networks. Here, a cosmopolitan population—including indigenous Papuan highlanders and newcomer merchants from distant Indonesian regions—gathers to buy and sell local horticultural produce and imported commodities, transit between modes of transportation, and engage in a variety of formal and informal economic activities. This article traces the emergence of a multifaceted commercial regulation agenda, in the wake of demands for the recognition of indigenous contributions to the regional economy. It considers recent indigenous-formulated regulation policies in the context of the region's commercial history, one that is marked by a colonial devaluation of indigenous economic life and, more recently, by uprisings, inter-ethnic tensions, and government attempts to control and contain informal vending. The article conceptualizes commercial regulation as a convergence between efforts to contain disruption and demands for the revaluation of marginalized economic practices. It argues that commercial regulation is especially salient in regions that have been relegated to an end-point position in national and global commodity distribution paths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large, landscape-scale national monuments have long been controversial. It has been claimed that large monuments harm local economies by restricting growth of the grazing, timber, mining, and energy industries. Others have asserted that large monuments aid economic growth by reducing reliance on volatile commodity markets and fostering tourism growth. In this study, we use a synthetic control approach to measure the average causal effect of nine national monument designations on county-level per capita income. We find no evidence that monument designation affected per capita income in any of 20 counties hosting nine large (>50,000 acres) national monuments established under the Antiquities Act (six monuments) or by legislative action (three monuments). The broad economic claims of both advocates and critics of large national monuments have little empirical support. The absence of a designation effect for large national monuments is likely due to the attributes of federal land and the legal constraints under which it is managed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism development has often been identified as a tool for balancing negative effects of economic restructuring, especially in peripheral regions. Tourism-based activities often utilize the availability of abundant nature, but although most English language studies of destination development are presented from western contexts, examples from post-Soviet Russia are rare. Western Siberia is a periphery with access to natural resources and heavy industrialization but remotely located from domestic (Russian) and international markets, where tourism is often considered a saviour, especially for the regional economies. Stakeholders in this Russian resource periphery face challenges in managing governance and cooperation in destinations development due to frequent institutional, economic and social changes. Using evolutionary economic geography and based on primary sources and interview data, tourism development and stakeholder relations are assessed in three Western Siberia regions: Tomsk, Kemerovo and Altai Krai. Findings show that for tourism to make a significant contribution, it must be more central to the economic development agenda in all three regions. However, it is currently only achieving a permanent high-profile in one of them, being crowded out by other (mostly primary) industries in the other two. Although the specific tourism governance set-up varies between the three regions, it is clear that public tourism governance still sits somewhat uneasily between state control and the market economy. Tourism receives substantial public subsidies, especially in large-scale investment projects, which depend on federal support within a governance system where decentralization seems to be somewhat limited and unstable. As a result, the tourism path development in the Siberian periphery is highly dependent on state intervention and success in other sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (BTH) integration project in China is ambitious which offers great potential with its promotion of sustainable and inclusive development. This study investigates the impact of regional financial development on economic growth in the BTH region, with panel data collected from 2007 to 2016. Two indicators namely, CREDIT (denoted as regional financial development depth) and BRANCH (denoted as regional financial intermediaries accessibility) are used to construct an integrated regional financial development indicator through the spatial econometrics approach. The spatio-temporal distribution characteristics of regional financial development and economic growth are analyzed. Afterward, the global Moran's I and local Getis–Ord Gi* statistics are applied to detect the presence of spatial autocorrelation. Finally, a spatial Durbin model (SDM) is utilized to examine spatial distribution and spatial association. The research findings of this study suggest that the CREDIT has a positive effect on regional economic growth, while the BRANCH has no impact on regional economic growth. Moreover, it is found that the spatial autocorrelation of CREDIT and BRANCH are statistically significant. The CREDIT of the neighboring areas has a negative spatial spillover effect on economic growth of one area, while the BRANCH in the neighboring areas has a positive effect on the one area. The results and research findings reported in this article highlight the role of regional financial development in improving the economic growth not only for Chinese policy makers but also for other countries' researchers and practitioners in this field. Highlights • The impact of regional financial development on economic growth in the BTH region are estimated. • The spatial autocorrelation of regional financial development and economic growth is measured. • The magnitude of spatial spillover effects on economic growth are studied. • Some policy suggestions in better driving economic growth are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we investigate the causal relationships between international tourism growth and regional economic expansion in China, and more importantly, disclose the factors determining the occurrence of these relationships. The empirical results reveal that 10 of 29 regions experienced tourism-led growth (TLG) during 1978 to 2013, whereas nine regions experienced economy-driven tourism growth (EDTG). Different from the past literature, this study uses Bayesian probit models to unveil the factors influencing these different growth patterns. Our results suggest that regions with less-developed economies, larger economic sizes, and covering larger geographic areas are more likely to experience TLG, and regions with less-developed economies are more likely to experience EDTG as well. Lastly, practical implications are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While much scholarly attention has been paid to ways in which metropolitan areas are politically structured and operated to achieve a dual goal, economic growth, and equality, relatively less is known about the complex relationship between metropolitan governance structures and growth–inequality dynamics. This study investigates how and to what extent metropolitan governance structures shape regional economic growth and inequality trajectories using data for 267 US metropolitan areas from 1990 to 2010. Findings from a two-stage least squares regression analysis suggest that economic growth is associated with governance structures in a nonlinear fashion, with relatively more rapid growth rates in both highly centralized and decentralized metropolitan areas. However, these regions are also found to experience a larger increase in income inequality, indicating an important trade-off to be considered carefully in exploring ways to reform existing governance settings. These findings further suggest that the so-called growth–inequality trade-off may exist not only in their direct interactions but through their connections via governance or other variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relevance of this research for our country is based on the need for the building of entrepreneurial potential because many social-economic parameters depend on the development of entrepreneurship, particularly at the level of competitiveness, innovation, performance, pricing, inflation, and the employment and income of the population. The objective of this paper is to develop recommendations for growing entrepreneurial potential in Perm Krai, one of the largest regions of the Volga Federal District. The leading methods for the investigation include analysis of theoretic sources, analysis of statistical data from open sources, and comparison of this data. The achievement of effective results in building entrepreneurial potential of Perm Krai depends on applying collective joint efforts of federal, regional, and local authorities as well as public organizations and by creating infrastructure for the support of businesses A t the same time it is important to ensure consulting, assistance and training for businesses, as well as to inform the business community about business opportunities in other regions of Russia and to develop international connections. This paper can be of practical significance for the improvement of the institutional arrangements of realization of entrepreneurial potential realization in Perm Krai as well as in other regions of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research background: In recent years, special attention has been given to the research direction regarding the study of economic, social, and demographic aspects of regional development. This direction is especially important for transition countries, including Ukraine. Despite that, there is a lack of research studies in which interdependencies of economic and demographic indicators of Ukraine's regions are investigated. Purpose of the article: The paper assesses the relationships between the selected indicators of Ukrainian regions (export of goods per capita, foreign direct investment per capita, and the average resident population) and gross regional product per capita. Methods: Research results were compared in the periods before and during the military conflict in the eastern part of the country, based on regional data for 2010 and 2015. We used a multiple linear econometric model and tested multicollinearity. Findings & Value added: The analysis confirms that there is a positive correlation between export of goods and gross regional product and between foreign direct investment and gross regional product. That is why it is necessary to pay attention to the effective use of existing trade opportunities, especially within the framework of the Ukraine -- EU Association Agreement, and to elaborate directions for further expansion of export activities. It is important to provide simpler and more understandable conditions in order to attract foreign investments in Ukrainian regions. Our study also shows that there is no influence of the average resident population on gross regional product. In many aspects, the interaction between demographic and economic components takes place through the labour market. This situation indicates that insufficient attention is given to regional employment issues, and the quantitative and structural imbalance is observed on the labour market at the regional level. In our opinion, to improve the situation, targeted activities should be elaborated on in the frame of regional development programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract We use isonymic distance to measure the dissimilarity in surname structure between populations of Chinese provinces, and we employ the minimum spanning tree (MST) and the single linkage cluster analysis (SLCA) to investigate the hierarchical structure of Chinese provinces and present its corresponding geographical features. We find diverse discrepancies in the averaged isonymic distance among provinces that are attributed to the heterogeneous surname distributions. The MST displays a core–fringe structure with Henan, Anhui, and Hubei making up the core, and several border provinces on the fringe. The degree centrality list in the MST reveals some "local centers" that act as regional economic centers. On the other hand, the geographical layout of MST reflects the historical "Rush to Northeast" mass migration, as well as the blocking effect of the Qinling–Huaihe line that separates north and south China. The clustering results derived from the SLCA show nine groups of provinces in which each group is geographically continuous. Highlights • We construct a network of Chinese provinces whose edges are isonymic distances. • A hierarchical tree of Chinese provinces is derived from isonymic distance matrix. • The geographical features of these hierarchical structures are exhibited in map. • Our empirical findings support the Tobler's First Law of Geography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to related theories of regional economics, eight indexes closely related to development level county economy of certain city in Sichuan province were chosen. Evaluation model of county economy competitiveness in Sichuan province based on multi-layer fuzzy neural network was proposed in the Thesis. Firstly, evaluation for in county economic competitiveness was analyzed, and evaluation index system for its competitiveness was given. Model index was provided with pre-treatment by adopting analysis method for normalization and factor; secondly, one four-layer fuzzy neural network model was used, and hierarchical fuzzy neural network model for economic competitiveness evaluation of county region was proposed. It included input layer, fuzzy layer, fuzzy reasoning layer and output layer, and composition and computing method for fuzzy function block and neural network module were analyzed; finally, through empirical analysis, effectiveness for algorithm was verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper reflects more than 25 years of experience in regional governance. The argumentation centres on North Rhine-Westphalia and the Ruhr area. The Ruhr area worked as a "laboratory" in experimenting with new modes of regional governance in the 1990s and 2000s. In a nutshell, four streams of regionalization have been implemented: Integrated regional development strategies, the International Building Exhibition IBA Emscher Park, Cluster policy, and Innovation City Bottrop and Rebuilding 21 - Digitalization in the Emscher Region as an example for real laboratories. The paper concludes with a hypothesis about different modes of regional governance, their strengths and weaknesses and asks for possibilities to improve the governance of smart specialisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-Speed Rail (HSR) has experienced a rapid development in many countries in the world, but how can planners and decision makers better understand the regional economic impact of the gigantic system remains a challenge. This paper introduces a comprehensive framework to assess the regional economic impacts of HSR using China as an example. The regional economic impacts of HSR are evaluated under a dynamic and spatial computable general equilibrium-modelling framework. Such a framework provides a comprehensive assessment of the impacts in terms of both temporal and spatial variations. The assessment provides an ex post evaluation of the impacts based on the actual data reflecting the infrastructure development and operation in the period 2002-2013. The research findings confirm that HSR infrastructure development in China has generated a positive regional economic impact. The growth rate of the real GDP stimulated by rail infrastructure investment were found particularly substantial in the southwest, but relatively small in the developed eastern regions. Conversely, the real GDP level change was found to be relatively large in the developed regions, such as the south and the east. The disaggregated analysis shows that the contributions to regional economic growth are primarily derived from the productivity increase in rail transport sector and the stimulus effect of rail infrastructure capital investment. The research findings provide implications for future HSR development in both Europe and China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article engages literature on special economic zones and territory in global development. I suggest a focus on labour's spatial class composition as constitutive of territorial coherence provides insights into how the Savan‐Seno Special Economic Zone in Lao PDR operates as an economic border territory bridging Laos to the regional and global economies. The distanciated global connections which special economic zones aim to create are predicated on zones gaining internal coherence for capital accumulation. I suggest zones' internal coherence depends on zone firms reworking the local class composition of labour, itself constituted by workers' spatial practices. In the Savan‐Seno zone this occurred through immobilising a mobile labour force and taking advantage of its continuing embeddedness within a subsistence rice‐producing village economy. The argument aims to illustrate how zones producing for global markets act as territories of complex spatiality which span and connect multiple spaces of production and workers' social reproduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the article are analyzed two types of cluster diagnostics, the basic approach to certain concepts of "tourism cluster", which reflects the different features of clusters in terms of legislative aspects, funding methods for cluster management, the ideal model for making statistical measurements, or the economic aspects used to describe and better understand the driving forces of competitiveness and growth, and thus the methods of identifying cluster. The authors identified main causes of the cluster formation in the tourist-recreational sphere and their characteristic features. The authors propose the application of a system approach, which assumes a cloud of tourists' clusters is a unified, integral, systematic education, provided by multiplicity of interoperable elements or subsystems; because the presence of tourist cluster systems allows for the development of the regional economy. At the same time, one of the most important issues is the analysis of the mechanisms of organization that cause the emergence of new, integrative properties in an integrated system. The result of integration processes taking place in the economy is the formation of synergistic interaction in cluster systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work is an intervention on the recent theoretical and empirical debate about the characteristics of the regional economic development policies and its governance dynamics, with an exploratory analysis on Argentina (Santa Fe) during 2001-2015. In the context of a transformed Argentinian state (devolution, rescaling regions, and rise of gover- nance), this work suggest that there has been an exaggerated faith on the governance networks capacity to implement regional policies, and that it has been problematic for the effectiveness of those policies. It suggest a debate around three articulated hypothesis: i) that there has been little or no support from the State to the governance networks; ii) that there has been an inadequate relation among the different levels of regulation (national, regional, local); iii) that there has been a big gap between the policies ideas about the regional space of governance and the existing space of governance where policies implement. The research aim to rethink, from within the regional State, the regional economic regeneration policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge plays a vital role as the key to long-term economic development, at both the national and regional levels. Furthermore, the new circumstances require the exercise of mature citizenship at an intellectual level and responsible citizenship in the political sphere. By its very nature, science education can make a decisive contribution towards achieving the two goals of economic development and civic progress. From this dual perspective, this work analyses the data from PISA 2015. Its aim is to provide an empirical analysis of the relative positions of the 17 Spanish autonomous communities in terms of science education. It focuses on three main variables and how they are related: students' performance in science, their epistemic conceptions, and their STEM vocations. A number of recommendations for improvement policies and practices relating to this evidence are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze locational policy coordination in the metropolitan regions of secondary capital cities. Secondary capital cities—defined as capitals that are not the primary economic city of their nation states—serve as the political center of their nation states; however, they must simultaneously explore new ways to develop their own regional economies. Locational policies, and their regional coordination, aim to strengthen the economic competitiveness of metropolitan regions. Our comparison of the metropolitan regions of Bern, Ottawa–Gatineau, The Hague, and Washington, D.C., reveals that vertical institutional fragmentation, together with high local tax autonomy, create an unlevel playing field, which prompts jurisdictions to behave fiercely in regional tax competition. These findings are troubling for secondary capital cities given their propensity to be located in fragmented metropolitan regions and the capital city‐specific local tax autonomy constraints imposed on them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AV technologies have the potential to transform urban landscapes and existing transport systems and networks. Yet, the utopian imaginary of reduced automobile ownership and a new shared economic future sits in tension with suggestions that car dependency, urban sprawl and transport inaccessibility will be exacerbated. The issues are situated in a complex governance landscape involving an influential private sector who are increasingly setting the agenda. The public sector may be forced into reacting to the new innovations by information technology and automobile companies as they are introduced into existing built environments. Drawing on an extensive literature base and interviews with public sector planners, this paper reveals the conceptual gaps in the framing of AV technology - the prospects and limits - and how these are conceived. The paper raises questions about the role urban planning can play in the rollout of AVs in order to anticipate and mediate unwanted built environment and socio-spatial impacts, as well as reconciling the ambition of transport innovation with the public purpose of planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of the autonomous vehicle (AV) will affect not only the transportation system, but also future patterns of land development. Integrated land use and transportation models will be critical tools in assessing the path forward with this technology. Key questions with respect to land use impacts of AVs arise from potential changes in sensitivity to travel and reduced demand for parking. It is an open question whether AVs will induce urban sprawl, or whether spatial economies of agglomeration will mitigate any reductions in travel time sensitivity. The deployment of shared fleets of AVs would likely reduce parking demand, producing yet to be explored impacts on property development within existing urban footprints. We perform a critical assessment of currently operational models and their ability to represent the adoption of AVs. We identify the representation of time in such models as a vital component requiring additional development to model this new technology. Existing model applications have focused on the discrete addition of new infrastructure or policy at a fixed point in time, whereas AV adoption will occur incrementally through time. Stated adaptation surveys are recommended as tools to quantify preferences and develop relevant model inputs. It is argued that existing models that assume comparatively static equilibrium have been convenient in the past, but are insufficient to model technology adoption. In contrast, dynamic model frameworks lack sufficient structure to maintain reasonability under large perturbations from base conditions. The ongoing advancement of computing has allowed models to move away from being mechanistic aggregate tools, towards behaviourally rich depictions of individual persons and firms. However, much work remains to move from projections of existing conditions into the future, to the evolution of the spatial economy as it evolves through time in response to new technologies and exogenous stresses. Principles from complex and evolutionary systems theory will be important in the development of models with the capacity to consider such dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The functioning of CEFTA-2006 within the 10-year period of its creation pointed out the low capacity and unsatisfactory performance of the region in regard of trade liberalization. In July 2017 under the Berlin Process, memberstates decided to enhance mutual cooperation by taking the free trade area to a higher level - regional economic area - which should provide full liberalization in trade in goods and services; free movement of capital and labor and digital integration. For this purpose an Agreement on Amendment of and Accession to the Central European Free Trade Agreement is issued in which a new Protocol 5 on trade in goods is integrated, while Protocol 6 on trade in services is also planned to be adopted and integrated. The paper is going to give a brief overview of the achieved trade integration within CEFTA-2006; observation on the obstacles for full trade liberalization and trade facilitation by detection of non-trade barriers; and analysis of Protocol 5 that concerns deeper trade liberalization, as well as trade facilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher institutions are prime for cultivating talents to respond to the economic, cultural and social development in local areas. It is of great significance to explore the integration of higher institutions with regional economies. This paper sheds new light on the correlation model between China's regional economy and higher institutions. Herein, many colleges and universities in Henan Province are sampled as study cases, how the higher institutions serve local economy is thoroughly studied. The findings show that the higher education combining regional requirements for economic development can effectively push forward the internal reform of the institutions, enhance the linkage between the institutions and the society, achieve a good effect in discipline construction. It is also suggested that higher institutions should further establish a sound social evaluation system and supervisory authority in future development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we investigated the impact of armed conflicts on intra‐regional trade flows. We made use of panel datasets from 15 ECOWAS member and 19 COMESA member countries for the period 1997 to 2015. Applying a robust functional estimation procedure based on IV GMM principles, the results are found to be regionally comparable, with the evidence indicating that armed conflicts constrain intra‐regional export and trade openness. The results indicate that the classical insurgency theory explains better the patterns of intra‐regional export flows and trade openness; whereas the economic interest theory explains better the patterns of intra‐regional import flows. The impact of armed conflict intensity on intra‐regional trade flows is found to be sensitive to border proximity, trade diversification, mineral rents and national income levels. While border proximity on its own enhances intra‐regional export and import flows, it also has the tendency of exacerbating the negative impact of armed conflicts. As armed conflicts intensify, for instance, member countries become more incentivized to implement secured border and trade policies as a way of guarding against counter flows of arms and illicit commodities. Our study confirms the need for regional economic communities to concentrate their integration efforts towards mitigating domestic and cross‐border armed conflicts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this research is to examine the challenges that have impeded the progression of the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa to a full regional economic community and explore prospects for the institution to be transformed to a competitive regional economic community by 2025. Hence, the research concludes that the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa has faced several challenges including persistent protectionism, inadequate political will and high occurrence and recurrence of conflicts among other factors that have slowed down its culmination to the desired full regional economic community. This research is informed by wide evidentiary base which includes policy papers, organisational reports and news, newspaper articles and journal articles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The objective of this study was to quantify the impact of public investment in space programs on the regional economic activity in the areas host to the program launch operations. I implement an econometric strategy that takes the timing of the Shuttle program retirement as a natural experiment to investigate the role of public investment in space as a driver of regional economic activity. I rely on a technique known as the synthetic control method to estimate the counterfactual outcomes for the Space Coast. Comparing the observed outcomes with the estimated counterfactual outcomes provides evidence of large spillover effects of the Shuttle program in the economy of the Space Coast. My results suggest that discontinuing the Shuttle program made payroll in Brevard County on average $824 million lower than the counterfactual outcome for every year since the final Shuttle mission, for a cumulative reduction in payroll of $3.3 billion below potential by 2015. In percentage terms, payroll grew at an average annual rate of 1.88% where its counterfactual growth rate was 5.25%. Evidence on employment suggests employment growth of 0.43% annually relative to counterfactual employment growth of 1.6%, keeping the recovery from the Great Recession anemic. Together, these estimates provide strong evidence that public investment in space is a boon for economic activity. The implications for space policy with this evidence are clear: public investment in space generates large and significant regional economic activity that needs to be taken into account when considering the costs and benefits of the investment. Further implications of the evidence for regional planners and firm managers are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluate the impact of a half century of nontransportation Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) investments on its constituent counties using quasi-experimental methods. We apply a set of propensity score methods and select the most appropriate matching algorithm for use in identifying the effects of policy implementation. The results of the analyses indicate that counties that received ARC funding grew faster than the control counties. The long-run per capita income growth rate in ARC investment counties was an average of 5.5 percent higher than in the control counties. Employment also grew significantly faster in these ARC counties than in the control counties for most of the study period. The average difference in the long-run employment growth rates between the counties that received ARC investments and those counties that did not was approximately 4.2 percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

“Transboundariness” refers to a new approach that identifies and prioritizes transboundary aquifers using socio-economic and political criteria, improving their characterization by using other variables in addition to their mere physical boundaries. This approach is applied to the hydrogeological units/aquifers shared by Mexico and Texas, with the following results. First, the rankings agree with the current level of attention to transboundary aquifers in the region by both countries, providing a quantifiable system that could be tested in other transboundary aquifers. Second, this approach provides a holistic and integrative perspective for transboundary aquifer assessment and prioritization. Third, this prioritization exercise expands the criteria currently used into a more integrative regime of groundwater links to the community as a whole. Finally, the results reflect not only how the transboundary aquifers are being used (or neglected) but also the socio-political context of the populations that depend on these resources for current and future development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition of the global energy system is one of the main trends that offers opportunities as well as challenges for the economy. Most literature evaluates the impact of that transition at a national level. That view is broadened towards a regional scale. Due to the lower energy density of many renewable energy sources, renewable energy generation will be more decentralised, leading to potentially significant changes in the regional economy when transitioning to a renewable energy system. In this paper the current literature and methods of assessing regional economic impacts of a transition to renewable energy generation is reviewed. The findings suggest an overall need to clearly define the topics, such as technologies, that are assessed and the evaluated time period. A guideline for a regional impact assessment is provided, focusing on the suitability of applied impact assessment methods (employment ratios, supply chain analyses, input-output models, and computable general equilibrium models). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key problems of the unstable development of regional economic systems and the weakening of the sustainable economic growth in the regions are revealed at the present stage of the national economy functioning and the economic reforms implementation in Ukraine. The methodological approach to the sustainable social and economic development of the region as to the effective land resources use is proposed. The mechanisms of land resources effective use in accordance with the policy of sustainable social and economic development of the region are substantiated. The main directions of the regions problems solution on the way to ensuring efficient market-oriented and ecologically balanced regional development of agricultural land use are determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay proposes a historical review of paramilitarism that breaks with the simple notion of death squads created to protect the capital of elites, or private armies of drug traffickers used by the state and the elites to delegate counterinsurgency to a third actor. The core argument is that Colombian paramilitarism should be understood as a complex process in which certain forms of coercion emerged to protect capital at the regional level. Eventually, these forms of coercion became in themselves a means to produce capital, and as a result they obtained an autonomous power from regional economic elites. In Colombia, paramilitaries ruled over peripheral communities that became dependent on the sources of capital formed by these groups and it was this capital that allowed peripheral communities to have access to economical markets. The essay uses the case of Urabá, a region emblematic in the history of paramilitarism, to illustrate the transformation of paramilitarism. Currently, paramilitary groups in the region called ´Urabeños´ are being commanded by former guerrilla fighters and peasants that have acquired the capacity to generate access to economic markets, amongst the inhabitants of the region, through the distribution of drug rents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author chiefly makes reference to G. William Skinner's theory of "central-place hierarchy," as well as the special circumstances of markets in the region of eastern Sichuan prior to the opening of Chongqing as a treaty port, to divide marketing in this region and time period into four levels, ranked from bottom to top as fairs, commercial market towns, small- to mid-sized commercial cities, and large commercial metropolises, and summarizes the extrinsic properties and standards of stratification for each level. The author shows that, prior to the opening of Chongqing, a marketing system with distinct levels, well-spaced distribution, and broad coverage had already taken shape in the region of eastern Sichuan. However, within this system, the majority of the marketing levels unilaterally undertook the function of "collection and distribution of commodities," and close links with specialized, large-scale commodity production were not formed. This caused the ties between each marketing level to be relatively loose, with uneven development, which impacted the vertical integration of the regional economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-timber forest products are sources of income for rural populations. This is the case in Burundi for bamboo and until a few years ago for rattan. The latter is threatened by clearing of its habitats for agricultural purposes. This study presents an overview of rattan in Burundi. A mapping of the sites still hosting rattan and hosted it some six to thirty years ago was carried out and the areas covered were measured. In total, rattan covered, in 2015, an area of 1.04 ha on various sites in southern Burundi and mainly in the Kigwena Forest Natural Reserve. The analysis of the anatomical features of rattan stems from this forest confirmed that the species present in Burundi is Eremospatha haullevilleana De Wild. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Three- River Source Region is rich in grassland resources, and research of balance between forage and livestock can provide decision support for grassland environmental protection and sustainable development of regional economy. In this paper, Golog and Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefectures in Qinghai Province, China were selected as the study area. The grassland production was retrieved using model and the carrying capacity was calculated. Then, balance analysis between forage and livestock was carried out by combining balance index between grassland and livestock (BGLI) and index of grazing pressure (Ip). The result shows that the balance status between forage and livestock in the two autonomous prefectures has been constantly improved from 2006 (BGLI is 47.1%) to 2013 (BGLI is -13.8%), however, the status deteriorated partly during 2014- 2015. Compared to Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (average BGLI is 38.15% ), the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (average BGLI is 33.51%) is better in balance status. In the end, the research suggested that relevant departments in the two autonomous prefectures should strengthen planning and policy regulation, strengthen the fine management of livestock balance in accordance with the"grass livestock"principle, and build decision support information system of livestock balance driven by big data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study computes the Discomfort Index, also known as the Misery Index, for 276 European Union NUTS2 regions to determine how “suffering” a region is or not before and after the global crisis. The geographical distribution of European Union regions according to their discomfort has deeply changed in the post-financial crisis years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the concept of the entrepreneurial university by examining roles of academic entrepreneurship departments in driving regional economic development outcomes. While a wealth of research investigates the role, activities and function of the entrepreneurial university, very little which focuses specifically on academic entrepreneurship departments, where much of the research, teaching and knowledge exchange concerning entrepreneurship takes place. Two case studies of large and active entrepreneurship departments are presented to illustrate the different roles and activities they undertake in the sphere of economic development in their regions or locales. A dual model of engagement is proposed, whereby the entrepreneurship department operates within the framework of the entrepreneurial university, but also as a regional actor in its own right. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • The empirical analysis was conducted from regional and provincial perspectives. • Industrial output growth contributed the most to China’s industrial CO 2 emissions. • Energy intensity was the decisive factor in controlling industrial CO 2 emissions. • Most provinces exhibited weak decoupling effect. • The factors effects and decoupling progress show distinct spatial characteristics. Abstract This paper utilizes the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) to quantify the contributions of various factors on industrial CO 2 emissions (ICE) at both the regional and provincial levels, and then analyzes the decoupling index and its components. The main results include: (1) Industrial activity was the leading promoting factor in ICE, while energy intensity was the decisive factor for controlling ICE in most provinces. (2) Energy structure change only had a marginal impact on ICE and varied considerably across provinces. (3) The effects of various factors are distinctly diverse in different provinces; generally, the inhibiting effects only partly offset the promoting effects. (4) Most provinces exhibited weak decoupling effect, energy intensity decline was the crucial factor in their decoupling progress, while energy structure switch only played a negligible role in decoupling progress, even exerted an opposite effect in emission mitigation in some provinces, and therefore dragged down their decoupling progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The success or failure of economic actors depends on a variety of factors, which I sort into three groups: attitudes and values, endowments, and rules. Of these three, we only fully control for factors in the first group. Factors in the other two groups are determined by luck, though through individual effort we may enhance them, particularly endowments such as talent or inherited resources. As individuals, most of us have no or very little influence on rules. Rules depend on power, and most people exercise power only indirectly as members of a group or groups. In this address, I focus on the rules, which also means that I focus on power, a neglected topic in economic development, and in modern economics in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the publication of Fagan and Webber’s Global Restructuring in 1994, Australia has experienced one of the most significant commodities-led economic booms in its history. Increasing global demand for iron ore, natural gas, coal and a host of other resources from the early 2000s contributed to a period of sustained economic growth, low unemployment and rising per capita incomes. While popular and political discourses have tended to focus on the national benefits of the boom, in reality the processes at play were complex, spatially uneven and highly contested. In this paper, we offer a multi-scalar interpretation of how the global commodities boom has reshaped Australia’s space economy. It reflects on the experience of the Pilbara region of Western Australia, arguing that the boom contributed to fundamental shifts in the nature of territorial development, socio-spatial relations, and economic governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Both international and regional economics discuss borders as barriers to economic growth. They hamper trade flows between areas sharing an international border (a demand effect), as well as causing firms’ inefficiency because of the increase in production costs (supply side). In the theoretical and empirical discussions, no question has been raised on whether regional economies are able to set up compensation mechanisms, by replacing low endowments with high efficiency in the use of existing assets, or by compensating an inefficient use of internal assets with an efficient use of external ones. The reply to this question has normative implications. Empirical evidence on the universe of 1,398 European NUTS3 regions is presented and policy suggestions elaborated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops an empirical, multi-layered and spatially-explicit agent-based model that explores sustainable pathways for Aberdeen city and surrounding area to transition from an oil-based economy to green growth. The model takes an integrated, complex systems approach to urban systems and incorporates the interconnectedness between people, households, businesses, industries and neighbourhoods. We find that the oil price collapse could potentially lead to enduring regional decline and recession. With green growth, however, the crisis could be used as an opportunity to restructure the regional economy, reshape its neighbourhoods, and redefine its identity in the global economy. We find that the type of the green growth and the location of the new businesses will have profound ramifications for development outcomes, not only by directly creating businesses and employment opportunities in strategic areas, but also by redirecting households and service businesses to these areas. New residential and business centres emerge as a result of this process. Finally, we argue that industries, businesses and the labour market are essential components of a deeply integrated urban system. To understand urban transition, models should consider both household and industrial aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the dissipative structure theory is used to describe the regional economic development system, and its dissipative structure characteristics are systematically expounded, pointing out that the economic system structure belongs to the dissipative structure category, and this paper introduces the gray correlation entropy theory, analyzes the gray correlation entropy with the annual GDP as the order parameter, establishes the evolutionary discriminant model based on the correlation entropy theory, analyzes the development model of the regional economy, the economic development situation of the current year can be judged, so the economic development of the past decade can be judged in this way, the applicability and reliability of the regional economic dissipative structure system entropy model are verified through this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the structure and level of international cooperation among African states in the area of agriculture and rural development. It focuses on the African Union (AU) and its eight Regional Economic Communities. The international cooperation schemes between the World Bank, EU, FAO and African countries in agricultural policy are reviewed. The paper concludes that, despite numerous cross-border initiatives, governance of agricultural policies in the pan-African context remains fragmented. Policy-making and cooperation schemes need to be stepped up to address continent-wide challenges in the sector. There is an urgent need for the AU and the EU to intensify their cooperation in agricultural policies and development. The AU in collaboration with its regional bodies should establish a common agricultural policy for the continent. Such initiatives need to be Africa-driven and adapted to African needs. The EU should only provide technical know-how and institutional support if welcomed by African partners. Collective action towards rural areas via greater coordination of African agricultural policies and actions would help to develop the missing institutional framework needed for agricultural development in the continent. Fostering economic growth through agricultural development and reforms may also lead to a reduction of migration as witnessed by the EU in the sixties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic growth convergence, one of the classical assumption in regional economic growth, has been perplexing. There are many empirical studies trying to test if there is regional convergence in China. In this article, we bring new information of the finer spatial scale to the existing literature by using neoclassical convergence analysis, cross-sectional specifications, panel data models, and spatial econometric techniques to test the convergence hypothesis across 2,286 cities and counties in China. Empirical findings from cross-sectional data and spatial panel data show that significant absolute β and conditional β convergence are present in gross domestic product per capita after controlling for investment return rate, human capital, savings rate, population growth, technology advancement, capital depreciation rate, and initial technology level. We also find spatial agglomeration in urban and county economic growth is strong, and spatial effects are significant. Urban and county economic growth convergence rates for 1992–2010 show a gradually accelerated development trend. We present significant evidence that levels of investment, human capital, and initial technology impose significant facilitating effects on city and county economic growth, while savings and population growth have significant negative effects. And city and county economic growth differ in terms of convergence levels and influential factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Airbnb has contributed to the rise in rents and house prices in European cities. • Airbnb's effects on rents and house prices are mainly concentrated in city centers. • No alleviating effects of recent home-sharing regulations could be documented. A heated debate has emerged drawing a connection between housing affordability and home-sharing platforms such as Airbnb. Despite first regulatory efforts by municipalities, the impact on rents and house prices has been examined insufficiently in scientific literature, especially with regards to Europe. Therefore, this paper addresses this gap by analyzing data on Airbnb listings for 25 European cities between 2010 and 2019. Using fixed effects and dynamic panel regressions, we show that home-sharing has significantly contributed to a rise in rents and house prices in European cities. While these effects are mainly concentrated in city centers, we also document effects in other urban districts. Finally, recent home-sharing regulations are not associated significantly with housing affordability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the service sector, digital technologies trigger a very different change that includes the birth of new industries such as the sharing economy, as well as a recast of existing service industries like the digital service economy, the servitization of manufacturing firms, and digital intermediation. Capello and Lenzi deliver indeed an important scientific contribution to the current debate on technological transformation. Technological unemployment in manufacturing sectors due to the introduction of automation, is coupled with job losses and wage cuts in services as well. [Extracted from the article]