Regional Science Matters


Book Description

​This volume is a collection of fresh and novel contributions to regional science. They commemorate the scientific inheritance of the founding father of regional science, the late Walter Isard. All papers are written by well-known scholars in the field and serve to highlight the great importance of regional science theory and methodology for a better understanding of current spatial and environmental problems throughout our planet. The book showcases a multidisciplinary panorama of modern regional science research and presents new insights by applying regional science approaches.




Regional Science Matters


Book Description




Big Data for Regional Science


Book Description

Recent technological advancements and other related factors and trends are contributing to the production of an astoundingly large and rapidly accelerating collection of data, or ‘Big Data’. This data now allows us to examine urban and regional phenomena in ways that were previously not possible. Despite the tremendous potential of big data for regional science, its use and application in this context is fraught with issues and challenges. This book brings together leading contributors to present an interdisciplinary, agenda-setting and action-oriented platform for research and practice in the urban and regional community. This book provides a comprehensive, multidisciplinary and cutting-edge perspective on big data for regional science. Chapters contain a collection of research notes contributed by experts from all over the world with a wide array of disciplinary backgrounds. The content is organized along four themes: sources of big data; integration, processing and management of big data; analytics for big data; and, higher level policy and programmatic considerations. As well as concisely and comprehensively synthesising work done to date, the book also considers future challenges and prospects for the use of big data in regional science. Big Data for Regional Science provides a seminal contribution to the field of regional science and will appeal to a broad audience, including those at all levels of academia, industry, and government.




Handbook of Regional Science


Book Description

The Handbook of Regional Science is a multi-volume reference work providing a state-of-the-art knowledge on regional science composed by renowned scientists in the field. The Handbook is intended to serve the academic needs of graduate students, and junior and senior scientists in regional science and related fields, with an interest in studying local and regional socio-economic issues. The multi-volume handbook seeks to cover the field of regional science comprehensively, including areas such as regional housing and labor markets, regional economic growth, innovation and regional economic development, new and evolutionary economic geography, location and interaction, the environment and natural resources, spatial analysis and geo-computation as well as spatial statistics and econometrics.




Development Studies in Regional Science


Book Description

This book examines major policy and planning issues in development studies from the regional science perspective. It investigates questions such as: “How are communities able to deal with uncertainties raised by conflicts, technology, and external shocks in the process of development?”; “How can nations achieve sustainable development in terms of resource allocation and management?”; and “How can developing countries improve their economic competitiveness while maintaining the objectives of equitable and coordinated growth among different regions?” using case studies that focus on different subfields, like infrastructure, environment, data science, sustainability and resilience. The book is organized in three parts. Part I clarifies fundamental issues regarding development studies and regional science in general, while Part II includes several case studies that address development-related opportunities and challenges with a focus on Asian countries. Lastly, Part III offers a global perspective and explores development experiences from countries throughout the world. Featuring contributions by leading academics and practitioners working at various organizations linked to international development, and including multidisciplinary analyses, the book appeals to students who are interested in development studies and regional science. It also offers planners and policymakers fresh insights into regional economic development.




New Directions in Economic Geography


Book Description

This book is a serious attempt to cover all of the relevant subdisciplines in the geographical economics framework. . . I would recommend the book to students of economic geography, regional economics, and related disciplines. Frans Boekema, Journal of Regional Science . . . this book is empirically and theoretically comprehensive in its scope. The nearly eighteen authors who have contributed to this book present a truly transatlantic perspective on NEG. . . this volume will be extremely useful to those dealing with rigorous modelling to examine spatial issues in economics, geography and planning. Rajiv Thakur, Regional Science Policy and Practice I recommend the book. . . The papers of a high quality, well written and organized; empirical analyses are based on the most advanced empirical techniques, and the reader enjoys their application. Roberta Capello, Growth and Change A very interesting volume indeed, recommended reading for everyone interested in theorizing space in economics or working in the empirical spatial-economic research arena. Economic Geography Research Group This important book explores original and alternative directions for economic geography following the revolution precipitated by the advent of so-called new economic geography (NEG). Whilst, to some extent, the volume could be regarded as part of the inevitable creative destruction of NEG theory, it does promote the continuing role of theoretical and empirical contributions within spatial economic analysis, in which the rationale of scientific analysis and economic logic maintain a central place. With contributions from leading experts in the field, the book presents a comprehensive analysis of the extent to which NEG theory is supported in the real world. By exploring whether NEG theory can be effectively applied to provide practical insights, the authors highlight novel approaches, emerging trends, and promising new lines of enquiry in the wake of advances made by NEG. Rigorous yet engaging, this book will be an essential tool for academics and researchers specialising in regional studies, urban and spatial economics and economic geography. It will also have widespread appeal amongst policymakers involved in planning and land use.




Smart Growth and Climate Change


Book Description

'The consensus on global warming and its effects are now almost unanimous. Even those politicians with serious denial issues are converting. That said, the question becomes: How well does this book deal with urban sprawl and climate change? Professor Ruth is a master at organizing thought (and of creative thought... but an editor most needs the former). He has pulled together a very impressive list of experts from good institutions and organized their contributions to this subject in a meaningful, useful way. I think the coverage of the issue is both very competent and complete.' - Bruce Hannon, University of Illinois, Urbana, US This innovative volume systematically brings together two strands of applied research that, to date, have been carried out separately - 'smart growth' research and climate change adaptability research. By providing theory, models, and case studies from North America, Oceania and Europe, the book creates synergies between the two strands, reconciles differences, and provides insights for decision-makers at national and local levels.




Science, Policy, and the Value-Free Ideal


Book Description

The role of science in policymaking has gained unprecedented stature in the United States, raising questions about the place of science and scientific expertise in the democratic process. Some scientists have been given considerable epistemic authority in shaping policy on issues of great moral and cultural significance, and the politicizing of these issues has become highly contentious. Since World War II, most philosophers of science have purported the concept that science should be "value-free." In Science, Policy and the Value-Free Ideal, Heather E. Douglas argues that such an ideal is neither adequate nor desirable for science. She contends that the moral responsibilities of scientists require the consideration of values even at the heart of science. She lobbies for a new ideal in which values serve an essential function throughout scientific inquiry, but where the role values play is constrained at key points, thus protecting the integrity and objectivity of science. In this vein, Douglas outlines a system for the application of values to guide scientists through points of uncertainty fraught with moral valence.Following a philosophical analysis of the historical background of science advising and the value-free ideal, Douglas defines how values should-and should not-function in science. She discusses the distinctive direct and indirect roles for values in reasoning, and outlines seven senses of objectivity, showing how each can be employed to determine the reliability of scientific claims. Douglas then uses these philosophical insights to clarify the distinction between junk science and sound science to be used in policymaking. In conclusion, she calls for greater openness on the values utilized in policymaking, and more public participation in the policymaking process, by suggesting various models for effective use of both the public and experts in key risk assessments.




Introduction to Regional Science


Book Description

Designed primarily for a half-year course.




Regional Analysis and Policy


Book Description

Regional development is attracting the attention of policy makers and scientists again, as regions, urban centers and rural areas, experience substantial pressures, particularly in Europe, as a consequence of globalization and geopolitical changes which lead to changes in spatial structures and dynamics. This book is based on the contributions of Greek regional science research presented at the 2006 Congress of the European Regional Science Association at Volos, Greece. The contributions selected to be presented in this book address these changes offering a fresh look into regional development. They provide an overview of regional development concerns from Greek regional scientists but the issues discussed pervade Greek particularities and stimulate thinking about regional science, regional development and regional policy in the early twenty-first century.