Meet Selina Soomal, City-REDI/WMREDI’s New Apprentice

I have recently started my role as an Apprentice Project Support Officer at City-REDI. My career pivot from eye care to project support was initiated by a project management industry-intensive programme. This gave me an insight into the essentials of project work, and the incentive to enter a new role, where I could obtain exposure … Continue reading “Meet Selina Soomal, City-REDI/WMREDI’s New Apprentice”

WMREDI Policy Briefing: Pride In Place

Pride in place is one of four overarching objectives in the Levelling Up White Paper as well as the least detailed of its twelve missions. This policy briefing by Rebecca Riley and Des McNulty explores this objective from the perspective of the role universities could play. The underlying argument of the pride in place mission … Continue reading “WMREDI Policy Briefing: Pride In Place”

Meet Donald Houston, City-REDI/WMREDI’s New Professor of Regional Economic Development

National data are wrong everywhere.  This is why a regional approach is essential to understand the economy.  More of this later. First to say is that I’m delighted to have joined City-REDI in April 2023 as a Professor of Regional Economic Development. My mission is to support and contribute to City-REDI’s rigorous and relevant research … Continue reading “Meet Donald Houston, City-REDI/WMREDI’s New Professor of Regional Economic Development”

WMREDI Policy Briefing: The Manufacturing Technology Centre

In this policy briefing, Robert Lynam, Dr Chloe Billing and Professor Simon Collinson look at the Manufacturing Technology Centre and its impact in the West Midlands. It outlines the findings from one of our WMREDI projects focused on examining regional innovation ecosystems and the relationships between universities, local firms, entrepreneurship, innovation, technology transfer, and knowledge … Continue reading “WMREDI Policy Briefing: The Manufacturing Technology Centre”

Meet Maryna Ramcharan, City-REDI’s New Senior Policy and Data Analyst

My name is Maryna Ramcharan and I  joined City REDI in May 2022. I am from Ukraine where I completed my PhD in Economic Sciences and the degree in Enterprise Management. My PhD thesis explored the opportunities for economic growth and vertical integration of agricultural farms and meat processing companies. The study aimed to develop … Continue reading “Meet Maryna Ramcharan, City-REDI’s New Senior Policy and Data Analyst”

Meet Annum Rafique- City-REDI / WMREDI’S New Research Fellow

My name is Annum Rafique, and I joined City-REDI in March 2022 as a Research Fellow. I have a PhD in economics from Cardiff University, which Sêr Cymru National Research Network for Low Carbon, Energy and Environment (NRN-LCEE) funded. My doctoral work focused on the sustainable intensification of dairy farms in Wales and England. I … Continue reading “Meet Annum Rafique- City-REDI / WMREDI’S New Research Fellow”

Meet Reen Blake-Carr, City-REDI’s New Policy and Data Analyst

I have been with the City-REDI team since July 2021, when I started out as an intern on placement for 13 weeks. During my internship, I worked on building City-REDI’s database of economic indicators for the region, which would allow colleagues to visit a ‘one-stop-shop’ to find the relevant data needed for projects. Using the … Continue reading “Meet Reen Blake-Carr, City-REDI’s New Policy and Data Analyst”

University of Birmingham Students Wanted for Internship at WMREDI

University of Birmingham students wanted for Policy and Data Analyst internships at WMREDI starting in June/July 2022. The West Midlands Regional Economic Development Institute (WMREDI) was established following City-REDI’s significant grant award from Research England (UKRI). The team is an innovative hybrid approach of academic, policy research and support staff delivering relevant and impactful research … Continue reading “University of Birmingham Students Wanted for Internship at WMREDI”

Entrepreneurial Behaviour and the COVID-19 Pandemic – A Collapse in Confidence or a Positive Response to Uncertainty?

Mark Hart uses data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Annual Population Surveys to examine the impact COVID-19 has had on entrepreneurship in the UK.  This blog highlights the work of a new project “Lifting the Lid on Enterprise Diversity & Growth in the West Midlands“, which will collect and analyse panel data on business … Continue reading “Entrepreneurial Behaviour and the COVID-19 Pandemic – A Collapse in Confidence or a Positive Response to Uncertainty?”

Why do Policymakers Need a Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED) in the West Midlands?

Meng Song and Mark Hart discuss the need to examine the demographic characteristics and motivation of entrepreneurs to increase our understanding of people who create new businesses and to track them throughout their start-up journey to improve our support for them.  This blog highlights the work of a new project “Lifting the Lid on Enterprise … Continue reading “Why do Policymakers Need a Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED) in the West Midlands?”