Another day in New Orleans at the Annual Conference of the Association of American Geographies. In my last blog, I raised the interesting question “What sort of policy is required for what sort of regional outcome?“. The answer to this question is difficult, but some of the discussions at this conference would suggest that any … Continue reading “What Sort of Policy is Required for What Sort of Regional Outcome: Reflections on the West Midlands from New Orleans”
Category: Policy
Perspectives from the AAG Annual Meeting 2018, New Orleans
This blog gives the perspective of two academics attending the AAG Annual Meeting 2018 in New Orleans. The first part of the blog is from Professor John Bryson, City-REDI, University of Birmingham, and the second part written by Dr. Vida Vanchan, State University of New York (SUNY), who is co-organising two sessions at the conference with Professor … Continue reading “Perspectives from the AAG Annual Meeting 2018, New Orleans”
Event: Engaging SME Tech Innovators with Local Government change agents – 11th May 2018, 10:30 – 16:30
“Have you created a digital solution to a really intransigent Local Government problem – something that saves money or helps vulnerable people? Have you been motivated – not by the bottom line – but by the fact that you care about public services? Do you want your innovation to get way more traction – to … Continue reading “Event: Engaging SME Tech Innovators with Local Government change agents – 11th May 2018, 10:30 – 16:30”
Boosting productivity to reduce low pay
On the 6th April, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation released a report called “Raising productivity in low-wage sectors and reducing poverty“. The report was produced by Professor Anne Green and Dr Amir Qamar, City-REDI, University of Birmingham, Dr Paul Sissons and Dr Kevin Broughton, Centre for Business in Society, Coventry University. The report looks at the role … Continue reading “Boosting productivity to reduce low pay”
How Key Workers can help young people progress towards work
This blog draws on work undertaken as part of the Big Lottery Fund Talent Match Evaluation and Learning Contract. The National Evaluation is led by CRESR, Sheffield Hallam University and the research on which this is based involves IER at the University of Warwick as well as City-REDI, University of Birmingham. The blog has been … Continue reading “How Key Workers can help young people progress towards work”
What Poverty really looks like in the UK
In 2012, the UK had a higher poverty rate than most EU member states. While poverty rates have declined since then, this progress is now at risk since policy changes under the 2017 Autumn Budget. UK Poverty 2017 underlines that “overall 14 million people live in poverty in the UK – over one in five … Continue reading “What Poverty really looks like in the UK”
Commonwealth 2022 – How to maximise the impact of Mega Events
The Commonwealth Games coming to Birmingham have the potential to be a catalyst for change, the challenge is to maximise that change within the demanding timescales. Looking to past mega events and evaluations can help us quickly adapt and adopt best practice and make decisions at speed. Yesterday morning I was part of a panel … Continue reading “Commonwealth 2022 – How to maximise the impact of Mega Events”
Women in Economic Development Research – Why the Woman’s Voice is Crucial: Part 4, View from an Experienced Researcher
City-REDI has published a series of blogs celebrating women in economic development and the contribution we make. They are inspired by the current experience of City-REDI which is pretty unusual in its numbers of women at all levels in the team; from senior management and leading academics, through to early career researchers and project support. … Continue reading “Women in Economic Development Research – Why the Woman’s Voice is Crucial: Part 4, View from an Experienced Researcher”
The new Tigger-like Philip Hammond: a bounce too far?
Along comes March 13 2018, and with Spring comes a new form of commentary by the Chancellor on the state of UK Plc. There was an obvious spring in this statement, driven by the slightly faster growth rate of the UK economy. There are perhaps two points to consider from the Spring statement. The first … Continue reading “The new Tigger-like Philip Hammond: a bounce too far?”
Part A: The Causes of Carillion’s Collapse
Racing to secure bids over rival construction companies, Carillion, the second-largest construction firm in the UK, hit a financial tipping point, lost the backing of the banks and collapsed. Its aggressive growth strategy and the diversification of its business portfolio increased the complexity of its internal structure. Coupled with poor oversight of its day-to-day operations, … Continue reading “Part A: The Causes of Carillion’s Collapse”