West Midlands Economic Monitor: June 2019

June’s edition of the West Midlands Economic Monitor is now available for you to keep up to date with recent developments in the region. This month’s monitor looks at hydrogen trains, the UK 2070 Commission, homelessness and fuel poverty, modular homes, and as always features analysis of the latest data about the region’s economic performance. … Continue reading “West Midlands Economic Monitor: June 2019”

Spacetime and Singapore: Towards a Four-Dimensional Understanding of City-Region Economies

I am based in Singapore this week and this provides an opportunity to consider Singapore as an extraordinary place. There are many aspects to Singapore as an extraordinary place. It is possible to argue that all places are extraordinary or special in some way. Context matters or perhaps more correctly ‘geography matters’. It is important … Continue reading “Spacetime and Singapore: Towards a Four-Dimensional Understanding of City-Region Economies”

Meet Professor Stephan Weiler, Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Birmingham – Part Two

Professor Stephan Weiler is currently visiting City-REDI as a Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair. The Fulbright Distinguished Chair Awards are viewed as the most prestigious appointments in the Fulbright Scholar Program, a global exchange program now in existence for over seventy years. In a series of blogs, Stephan will introduce himself, outline how this partnership came … Continue reading “Meet Professor Stephan Weiler, Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Birmingham – Part Two”

Meet Professor Stephan Weiler, Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Birmingham

Professor Stephan Weiler is currently visiting City-REDI as a Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair. The Fulbright Distinguished Chair Awards are viewed as the most prestigious appointments in the Fulbright Scholar Program, a global exchange program now in existence for over seventy years. In a series of blogs, Stephan will introduce himself, outline how this partnership came … Continue reading “Meet Professor Stephan Weiler, Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Birmingham”

Knowledge Translation and People-led Approaches to Achieving Urban Sustainable Development Goals: Reflections from the African Perspective 12+ Conference, Delft

Global air pollution is a problem attributed to urbanisation and provides a good reference point for understanding and addressing the gap between scientific knowledge and policy practice in Africa. African development potentials and challenges have been identified and ways forward suggested in many publications and conferences. Yet, the reality of African development challenges is a … Continue reading “Knowledge Translation and People-led Approaches to Achieving Urban Sustainable Development Goals: Reflections from the African Perspective 12+ Conference, Delft”

Never-exit Brexit and Remaining within the European Union: Half-Hearted versus Enthusiastic Remainers

It has been the day of all fools. The UK Parliament continues in its inability to make any progress regarding the on-going relationship between the UK and the EU. I am beginning to wonder about time and space and the entry of the UK and the EU into a new historical period. This is perhaps … Continue reading “Never-exit Brexit and Remaining within the European Union: Half-Hearted versus Enthusiastic Remainers”

Parliamentary ‘Constipation’: Toilet Paper, Brexit Apocalypse and the Kalends or Ides of April

I had a dream last night. I awoke on the Kalends or perhaps the Ides of April to a Brexit Apocalypse. The UK Government had failed to persuade Parliament to approve the withdrawal deal and the UK had left the EU without the benefits of a negotiated and agreed deal. There is much confusion here … Continue reading “Parliamentary ‘Constipation’: Toilet Paper, Brexit Apocalypse and the Kalends or Ides of April”

What do England’s towns need from devolution post-Brexit?

With just a couple of weeks to go until the UK’s planned exit from the European Union, the country still faces significant uncertainties about the shape Brexit will take and the impact it will have on businesses and livelihoods. Yet perhaps more concerning is what Brexit has so starkly revealed about the state of regional … Continue reading “What do England’s towns need from devolution post-Brexit?”

A Bollywood Solution to Air Pollution: Linking Research and Policy to the Cinema Screen

On the 6-7 March 2019, Professor John Bryson participated in a workshop in New Dehli exploring the challenges of urban air pollution. The workshop was co-organised by the University of Birmingham with the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. Professor Bryson is part of the team working on the ASAP East Africa Project – which aims to provide … Continue reading “A Bollywood Solution to Air Pollution: Linking Research and Policy to the Cinema Screen”

City-REDI Brexit Regional Participatory Workshop Videos

Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, “The Economic Impacts of Brexit on the UK, its Regions, its Cities and its Sectors” project started in April 2017 and is part of a series of 25 projects funded by ESRC to support the initiative UK in a Changing Europe coordinated by Professor Anand Menon at King’s … Continue reading “City-REDI Brexit Regional Participatory Workshop Videos”