Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics

Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics
Name	Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics
Author	various
Language	English
Subject	Regional economics; Urban economics
Genre	Academic
Publisher	North-Holland (Elsevier)
Pub date	1990–present
Media type	Print; electronic
Pages	multiple volumes

Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics is a multi-volume scholarly reference work that surveys research on spatial aspects of United States and European Union development, metropolitan dynamics, and regional policy. It assembles contributions from leading figures affiliated with institutions such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, London School of Economics, and University of California, Berkeley. The series has been used by scholars connected to programs at World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, European Commission, and United Nations agencies.

Overview

The Handbook presents synthetic reviews and original research on topics spanning urban systems like New York City, Los Angeles, London, and Tokyo; regional growth episodes such as the Rust Belt transformation and Silicon Valley expansion; and policy initiatives exemplified by the Marshall Plan reconstruction and European Regional Development Fund. Contributors draw on empirical work from datasets compiled by institutions including National Bureau of Economic Research, U.S. Census Bureau, Eurostat, and OECD. Comparative case studies reference cities including Paris, Berlin, São Paulo, Mumbai, and Shanghai and involve analysis methods pioneered by scholars at Princeton University, Stanford University, and Yale University.

History and Development

Conceived during debates in the 1980s about regional disparities and urban decline, the Handbook emerged amid policy attention to phenomena studied by researchers from Columbia University, University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Michigan. Early volumes reflected theoretical foundations laid by economists associated with Johns Hopkins University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Cowles Commission lineage, while later volumes incorporated methods popularized at Bell Labs and in work connected to RAND Corporation. The series traces intellectual currents linked to figures who engaged with commissions led by Alan Walters, Michael Porter, and panels convened at Bretton Woods forums.

Content and Structure

Organized into thematic parts, the Handbook covers urban agglomeration and location theory with roots in the work of scholars from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and London School of Economics; labor markets and migration studies tied to research centers at Princeton University and University of California, Los Angeles; housing markets analyzed with data from Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Bank of England; transportation and infrastructure referencing projects like Crossrail, Interstate Highway System, and Shinkansen; and spatial policy evaluations involving the European Investment Bank and Asian Development Bank. Methodological chapters engage econometric techniques developed at Cowles Foundation, spatial statistics advanced at UCLA, and computational models influenced by work at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Notable Contributors and Editors

Prominent economists and urbanists who have contributed or served as editors include scholars affiliated with Harvard University (including those from Kennedy School of Government), leading faculty from MIT departments, and researchers associated with LSE and the University of Chicago. Names mirrored in institutional affiliations include academics who have held positions at National Bureau of Economic Research, advised World Bank presidents, or taught at Columbia University and Yale University. The editorial apparatus has drawn on networks spanning Royal Society fellows, members of the National Academy of Sciences, and recipients of prizes such as the John Bates Clark Medal and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

Impact and Reception

The Handbook has informed scholarship cited in works published by Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and journals such as Quarterly Journal of Economics, Journal of Political Economy, Regional Studies, and Journal of Urban Economics. Its influence extends to policy reports from European Commission directorates, deliberations at United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), and strategy documents from city administrations including New York City and Singapore. Reviews in outlets connected to American Economic Association conferences and symposiums at Royal Geographical Society have highlighted its role in shaping debates on deindustrialization in regions like the Midwest United States and growth corridors in regions such as the Pearl River Delta.

Editions and Publication History

First volumes were published by North-Holland in the early 1990s, later consolidated under Elsevier imprints with successive editions reflecting advances in spatial econometrics and urban theory. Later editions incorporated chapters by scholars based at University of Toronto, University of British Columbia, National University of Singapore, and Tsinghua University, and addressed contemporary themes including globalization effects observed in Hong Kong and Dubai, climate adaptation measures referenced in studies of Venice and Miami, and digital transformation trends visible in Silicon Valley and Shenzhen. Each edition's editorial boards have included members drawn from funding bodies such as the European Research Council and advisory roles in agencies like the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Category:Handbooks