This paper uses high-frequency nighttime time lights data to estimate the impacts of the Covid-19 crisis on economic activity during the first year of the pandemic for a global sample of 2,800 cities, covering a total population of 2.5 billion people. Activity is found to be negatively affected...

This paper integrates daytime and nighttime satellite imagery into a spatial general-equilibrium model to evaluate the returns to investments in new motorways. Our approach has particular value in developing-country settings in which granular data on economic activity are scarce. To demonstrate...

The paper studies the dynamics of agricultural land use at the global scale as measured from space using satellite imagery between 2003 and 2018. It shows large global movements in and out of cropland and correlates these movements with biophysical, economic, and institutional variables. The...

The paper studies the dynamics of agricultural land use at the global scale as measured from space using satellite imagery between 2003 and 2018. It shows large global movements in and out of cropland and correlates these movements with biophysical, economic, and institutional variables. The...

Towns and cities are economic and social microcosms in which large numbers of people and firms interact. These interactions largely shape how a city looks, how it functions, and how it grows. But how exactly does this many-sided relationship work? What are the specific drivers of urban economic...

Context: Walkability is an important element for assessing urban sustainability. There are increased concerns that more cities in the People's Republic of China (PRC) have become less walkable. Objectives: We aim to develop a composite walkability index. We intend to use it to evaluate the...

Walkability is an important element for assessing urban sustainability. As the People's Republic of China (PRC) rapidly urbanizes, there are increased concerns that more of its cities have become less walkable. We aim to develop a composite walkability index to evaluate the spatiotemporal...

Context: Walkability is an important element for assessing urban sustainability. There are increased concerns that more cities in the People's Republic of China (PRC) have become less walkable. Objectives: We aim to develop a composite walkability index. We intend to use it to evaluate the...