Resilience, Politics and Awards: Reflections from Regional Studies Association’s Conference in Santiago de Compostela

Tasos Kitsos reflects on this year’s Regional Studies Association’s annual conference in Santiago de Compostela. Every RSA conference is a great opportunity to meet old friends, make new, discuss research and engage in new collaborations. This one was particularly excting since it was the first time I was involved in organising a special session. Together … Continue reading “Resilience, Politics and Awards: Reflections from Regional Studies Association’s Conference in Santiago de Compostela”

How to USE-IT!

USE-IT! is a three-year European Union funded programme which aims to pioneer innovative approaches to inclusive urban development in an area of persistent poverty and deprivation in inner city Birmingham. The programme is framed around urban poverty and urban transformations and is led by Centre for Urban and Regional Studies (CURS) at the University of … Continue reading “How to USE-IT!”

New Policy Institute: The State of Economic Justice in Birmingham and the Black Country

NPI’s recent report on behalf of the Barrow Cadbury Trust depicts a shocking, if not surprising, picture of economic injustice in England’s second city and the surrounding Black Country. The report combines the traditional economic barometers like productivity with the ideas of social justice and how the economy spreads well-being. The first of its kind … Continue reading “New Policy Institute: The State of Economic Justice in Birmingham and the Black Country”

The Realities, Challenges and Strengths of the External Funding Environment at LEP Level

When I joined City-REDI in October, I was seconded 50% of my time to the Smart Specialisation Hub in Islington for six months. The Hub provided analysis to improve local and national understanding of innovation capabilities, benchmarking innovation activity across Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). Established in 2010 by the then Department for Business, Innovation and … Continue reading “The Realities, Challenges and Strengths of the External Funding Environment at LEP Level”

Brexit and the UK’s Regional and Urban Challenges

Brexit poses four direct challenges that relate to sub-national, regional and urban issues. First, it leads to an economic challenge in that the UK’s interregional inequalities are likely to become even greater than they currently are. Second, and consequent upon the first, is that Brexit also leads to a political challenge in that the expectations of voters … Continue reading “Brexit and the UK’s Regional and Urban Challenges”

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

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 and outline how this partnership … Continue reading “Meet Professor Stephan Weiler, Fulbright Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Birmingham – Part Three”

Economic Resilience: The Multi-Dimensional Role of Skills

City-REDI has prepared this brief to inform the debate on economic resilience. It draws on resilience research at the Institute and elsewhere and is prepared under funding provided by the Economic and Social Research Council (ES/S011226/1). It first discusses the concept of resilience in political and policy discourse at the national level and then considers … Continue reading “Economic Resilience: The Multi-Dimensional Role of Skills”

Brexit Employment Risks by Occupation

Brexit will cause impediments to exports from the UK to the EU. These will affect UK sectors to different extents. Some sectors sell large shares of their output to EU markets, while others do not. These differences have an impact on the degree to which specific occupational types of employment are exposed to trade risks … Continue reading “Brexit Employment Risks by Occupation”

Inequality, Not Facebook, Threatens Our Democracies

In a recent viral TED Talk, the British journalist Carole Cadwalladr accused big tech companies in Silicon Valley of threaten liberal democracies and becoming “accessories” to their alleged subversion. In particular, she recalled the Cambridge Analytica case and accused Facebook of acting as a tool to spread lies and misinformation that eventually made Leave campaign … Continue reading “Inequality, Not Facebook, Threatens Our Democracies”

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”