The Rise of the Creative Class, which was originally published in 2002, has generated widespread conversation and debate and has had a considerable impact on economic development policy and practice. This essay briefly recaps the key tenants of the creative class theory of economic development,...

Clusters and cluster policy have become a dominant paradigm in the world of both economic development theory and practice. Cluster theory suggests that firms that are part of a geographically defined cluster benefit from being part of that cluster and that these benefits result in growth in...

The authors provide a review of the literature on U.S. central city growth and distress during the second half of the twentieth century. The literature reveals that city growth tended to be higher in metropolitan areas with favorable weather, higher growth, and greater human capital, whereas...

Regional workforce development collaborations have emerged as a notable approach to tackle complex problems within workforce development systems. While much of the existing research on workforce development documents the importance of promoting regional workforce development collaborations,...

Executive surveys ranking business climate factors have become commonplace in site selection publications. However, these rankings rarely examine if the surveyed firms are receiving economic development incentives and whether or not these incentives influence business climate perceptions. This...

Many ethnic inner city neighborhoods in US cities are rich in traditions, history, art, and cuisine but are also suffering from disinvestment, high poverty rates, and deterioration. In the face of a growing popularity of cultural tourism, an opportunity exists to explore how neighborhood...

There is increasing evidence that the stock of college-educated labor in an area has fundamental effects on state and local economies through its association with wages, economic growth, personal incomes, and tax revenues. As a result, policy makers in many states attempt to increase the...

Research to date suggests that occupation clusters may be at least as important as industry clusters in driving regional competitive advantage. A nationwide mapping of occupation clusters, with data available for every U.S. county and the capability to aggregate counties to a regional level,...

Energy-based economic development (EBED) can provide economic, social, and environmental benefits, such as job creation, industry development, and alternative energy deployment. The United States has recently devoted substantial financial support to EBED efforts. Although early assessments of...

The 1988 Base Closure and Realignment Act empowered the Commission on Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) to undertake five rounds of significant military base closure and realignment. Investigating the economic impacts associated with base closures provides the first step in not only...