This article explores the role of evolutionary economic geography in enhancing understanding and implementation of the circular economy (CE). By incorporating spatial and territorial dimensions into CE research, this study emphasizes the significant influence of geographical factors on achieving economic and environmental objectives. The research highlights the importance of localizing CE practices and emphasizes the contributions of proximity theory and territorial governance in promoting collaborative networks that are crucial for CE success. Furthermore, the article introduces the concept of Territorial Circular Ecosystems, which provides a framework for analyzing regional variations and the interplay between local actors, resources, and institutional support in the deployment of the CE. The findings offer fresh insights for policymakers and researchers, advocating for place-based policies to address CE challenges and optimize sustainability strategies.
{"title":"Economic geography’s contribution to understanding the circular economy","authors":"Sébastien Bourdin, André Torre","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae040","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae040","url":null,"abstract":"This article explores the role of evolutionary economic geography in enhancing understanding and implementation of the circular economy (CE). By incorporating spatial and territorial dimensions into CE research, this study emphasizes the significant influence of geographical factors on achieving economic and environmental objectives. The research highlights the importance of localizing CE practices and emphasizes the contributions of proximity theory and territorial governance in promoting collaborative networks that are crucial for CE success. Furthermore, the article introduces the concept of Territorial Circular Ecosystems, which provides a framework for analyzing regional variations and the interplay between local actors, resources, and institutional support in the deployment of the CE. The findings offer fresh insights for policymakers and researchers, advocating for place-based policies to address CE challenges and optimize sustainability strategies.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"2 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142490234","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Digital business-to-business (B2B) platforms have become essential components of today's economy. However, the impact of digital B2B platforms on global production networks has not yet been sufficiently conceptualized and empirically examined. This article proposes an analytical framework to theorize platform-based reconfigurations of global production networks. By using the case of digital logistics platforms, the article illustrates that service-centred platforms, in particular, have a major impact on global production networks, as they are able to position themselves as lead firms and to utilize data to shape the organizational and spatial composition of global production networks.
{"title":"Digital platforms and the reconfiguration of global production networks","authors":"Philip Verfürth, Veronique Helwing-Hentschel","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae039","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae039","url":null,"abstract":"Digital business-to-business (B2B) platforms have become essential components of today's economy. However, the impact of digital B2B platforms on global production networks has not yet been sufficiently conceptualized and empirically examined. This article proposes an analytical framework to theorize platform-based reconfigurations of global production networks. By using the case of digital logistics platforms, the article illustrates that service-centred platforms, in particular, have a major impact on global production networks, as they are able to position themselves as lead firms and to utilize data to shape the organizational and spatial composition of global production networks.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"54 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142449640","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Andrea Batch, Benjamin Bridgman, Abe Dunn, Mahsa Gholizadeh
Economic geography data are typically reported using political units, such as counties, which often do not match economic units. Commuting zones (CZs) group counties into labor markets. However, CZs are not the most appropriate grouping for other economic activities. We introduce consumption zones (ConZs), groupings of counties appropriate for the analysis of consumption. We apply CZ methodology to payment card data, which report spending flows across US counties for fifteen industries. We find that different industries have different market sizes. Grocery stores have more than five times the number of ConZs as entertainment. We apply ConZs to measuring industry concentration.
{"title":"Consumption zones","authors":"Andrea Batch, Benjamin Bridgman, Abe Dunn, Mahsa Gholizadeh","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae035","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae035","url":null,"abstract":"Economic geography data are typically reported using political units, such as counties, which often do not match economic units. Commuting zones (CZs) group counties into labor markets. However, CZs are not the most appropriate grouping for other economic activities. We introduce consumption zones (ConZs), groupings of counties appropriate for the analysis of consumption. We apply CZ methodology to payment card data, which report spending flows across US counties for fifteen industries. We find that different industries have different market sizes. Grocery stores have more than five times the number of ConZs as entertainment. We apply ConZs to measuring industry concentration.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"122 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142377352","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
On 5 June 2017, an airspace blockade was imposed on the State of Qatar by Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (neighboring countries), and Egypt. We exploit this exogenous increase in air transportation costs toward non-blockading countries to examine the effect of increased travel distance, due to re-routing, on bilateral trade. Based on a gravity model estimated using a Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimator, we find a distance elasticity of imports between −0.3 and −0.5. Overcoming the limitations of cross-sectional studies and taking advantage of this quasi-natural experiment, our findings are robust and revise downward previous estimates of the distance elasticity.
{"title":"The gravity of distance: evidence from a trade embargo","authors":"Afnan Al-Malk, Jean-François Maystadt, Maurizio Zanardi","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae033","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae033","url":null,"abstract":"On 5 June 2017, an airspace blockade was imposed on the State of Qatar by Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (neighboring countries), and Egypt. We exploit this exogenous increase in air transportation costs toward non-blockading countries to examine the effect of increased travel distance, due to re-routing, on bilateral trade. Based on a gravity model estimated using a Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimator, we find a distance elasticity of imports between −0.3 and −0.5. Overcoming the limitations of cross-sectional studies and taking advantage of this quasi-natural experiment, our findings are robust and revise downward previous estimates of the distance elasticity.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"39 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142360143","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
We revisit the natural experiments of division and unification of Germany. The negative shock to local market access following the division of Germany led to a fast and strong downward adjustment of the size of West German cities near the new border. In contrast, the positive shock of reunification did not lead to any change in their relative size. Even three decades after reunification, no convergence can be observed. We show that local subsidies to East Germany could have contributed to this asymmetry in time.
{"title":"When market access gains do not spur urban growth","authors":"Marius Klein, Ferdinand Rauch","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae032","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae032","url":null,"abstract":"We revisit the natural experiments of division and unification of Germany. The negative shock to local market access following the division of Germany led to a fast and strong downward adjustment of the size of West German cities near the new border. In contrast, the positive shock of reunification did not lead to any change in their relative size. Even three decades after reunification, no convergence can be observed. We show that local subsidies to East Germany could have contributed to this asymmetry in time.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142321645","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Stefan Geskus, Matthijs B Punt, Thomas Bauwens, Rense Corten, Koen Frenken
In recent decades, renewable energy cooperatives have substantially increased their share of renewable energy production. The operation of these cooperatives requires collective action, potentially supported by local social capital. We investigate whether municipal-level bonding and bridging social capital explain the differences in the prevalence of renewable energy cooperatives across Dutch municipalities. We measure social capital directly from social network structures within and between municipalities, thus overcoming limitations of using proxies. Our empirical results reveal that bonding rather than bridging social capital supports renewable energy cooperatives, shedding new light on the role these types of social capital play in regional development.
{"title":"Does social capital foster renewable energy cooperatives?","authors":"Stefan Geskus, Matthijs B Punt, Thomas Bauwens, Rense Corten, Koen Frenken","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae031","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae031","url":null,"abstract":"In recent decades, renewable energy cooperatives have substantially increased their share of renewable energy production. The operation of these cooperatives requires collective action, potentially supported by local social capital. We investigate whether municipal-level bonding and bridging social capital explain the differences in the prevalence of renewable energy cooperatives across Dutch municipalities. We measure social capital directly from social network structures within and between municipalities, thus overcoming limitations of using proxies. Our empirical results reveal that bonding rather than bridging social capital supports renewable energy cooperatives, shedding new light on the role these types of social capital play in regional development.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"2 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142275568","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In urban economics, transportation costs are a key determinant of land value. However, in virtual worlds, these costs are generally limited by the users’ ability to teleport. Drawing from urban and attention economic literature, we propose a theoretical model microfounded on user behavior. The model suggests that the relative value of land parcels hinges on their potential to attract visitors. Our empirical analysis supports this by demonstrating that location remains crucial in virtual worlds and highlighting the role of the teleportation threshold. We discuss the model’s general applicability, reaffirming the significance of location within most virtual worlds.
{"title":"Land valuation in the metaverse: location matters","authors":"Mitchell Goldberg, Peter Kugler, Fabian Schär","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae027","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae027","url":null,"abstract":"In urban economics, transportation costs are a key determinant of land value. However, in virtual worlds, these costs are generally limited by the users’ ability to teleport. Drawing from urban and attention economic literature, we propose a theoretical model microfounded on user behavior. The model suggests that the relative value of land parcels hinges on their potential to attract visitors. Our empirical analysis supports this by demonstrating that location remains crucial in virtual worlds and highlighting the role of the teleportation threshold. We discuss the model’s general applicability, reaffirming the significance of location within most virtual worlds.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"7 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142085181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This article studies the effect of return initiatives in rural regions of Germany on interregional return migration. The initiatives aim to increase return migration by, amongst other things, providing information on local employment opportunities and personal support to workers interested in returning to find a job in the former rural region of residence. Analysing administrative data on individual labour market trajectories through survival analysis and difference-in-differences estimation, we find that return initiatives, on average, promote interregional return migration. Among the considered workers, particularly those in the middle and at the top of the wage distribution are more likely to return.
{"title":"Welcome back! The impact of ‘return initiatives’ on return migration to rural regions","authors":"Moritz Meister, Jan Cornelius Peters, Anja Rossen","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae028","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae028","url":null,"abstract":"This article studies the effect of return initiatives in rural regions of Germany on interregional return migration. The initiatives aim to increase return migration by, amongst other things, providing information on local employment opportunities and personal support to workers interested in returning to find a job in the former rural region of residence. Analysing administrative data on individual labour market trajectories through survival analysis and difference-in-differences estimation, we find that return initiatives, on average, promote interregional return migration. Among the considered workers, particularly those in the middle and at the top of the wage distribution are more likely to return.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"145 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142085072","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Miquel-Àngel Garcia-López, Ilias Pasidis, Elisabet Viladecans-Marsal
We study whether highway and railroad improvements cause population suburbanization in Europe’s cities. We construct a unique population and transportation dataset covering 579 cities from 29 European countries for the period 1961–2011. In order to make a causal inference, we rely on historical instruments. Our average results indicate that highways, but not railroads, were responsible for the suburbanization process: each additional highway ray decreased the share of the central city population by 5 percentage points, whereas new railroads had no impact. The heterogeneity analyses provide evidence of different patterns based on the time of the investment, the city’s size and density, and its geographical location.
{"title":"Suburbanization and transportation in European cities","authors":"Miquel-Àngel Garcia-López, Ilias Pasidis, Elisabet Viladecans-Marsal","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae029","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae029","url":null,"abstract":"We study whether highway and railroad improvements cause population suburbanization in Europe’s cities. We construct a unique population and transportation dataset covering 579 cities from 29 European countries for the period 1961–2011. In order to make a causal inference, we rely on historical instruments. Our average results indicate that highways, but not railroads, were responsible for the suburbanization process: each additional highway ray decreased the share of the central city population by 5 percentage points, whereas new railroads had no impact. The heterogeneity analyses provide evidence of different patterns based on the time of the investment, the city’s size and density, and its geographical location.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142042438","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Konstantin Boss, Andre Groeger, Tobias Heidland, Finja Krueger, Conghan Zheng
We develop monthly asylum seeker flow forecasting models for 157 origin countries to the EU27, using machine learning and high-dimensional data, including digital trace data from Google Trends. Comparing different models and forecasting horizons and validating out-of-sample, we find that an ensemble forecast combining Random Forest and Extreme Gradient Boosting algorithms outperforms the random walk over horizons between 3 and 12 months. For large corridors, this holds in a parsimonious model exclusively based on Google Trends variables, which has the advantage of near real-time availability. We provide practical recommendations how our approach can enable ahead-of-period asylum seeker flow forecasting applications.
{"title":"Forecasting bilateral asylum seeker flows with high-dimensional data and machine learning techniques","authors":"Konstantin Boss, Andre Groeger, Tobias Heidland, Finja Krueger, Conghan Zheng","doi":"10.1093/jeg/lbae023","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbae023","url":null,"abstract":"We develop monthly asylum seeker flow forecasting models for 157 origin countries to the EU27, using machine learning and high-dimensional data, including digital trace data from Google Trends. Comparing different models and forecasting horizons and validating out-of-sample, we find that an ensemble forecast combining Random Forest and Extreme Gradient Boosting algorithms outperforms the random walk over horizons between 3 and 12 months. For large corridors, this holds in a parsimonious model exclusively based on Google Trends variables, which has the advantage of near real-time availability. We provide practical recommendations how our approach can enable ahead-of-period asylum seeker flow forecasting applications.","PeriodicalId":48251,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Geography","volume":"127 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141915170","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}