The Chair of the RSA South West Branch, Ian Smith, is a Senior Lecturer in Economics at the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol).
“I work on a wide range of issues relating to regional economics and to the production of public policy at different territorial levels. In this I hold to the notion of a pluralistic form of economics where economic thinking/methods can be widely applied to many areas of public policy analysis.
I am currently working on projects that explore processes of self-organising for environmental groups (a collective action problem) for the tri-national SELFCITY project and I am working on measuring how spending on public goods (such as health, education and other local government services) can generate inequality/build equality as part of a “Europe 2020″ collaboration (COHSMO). I have been active in work have written on work funded by the European Territorial Observatory (ESPON) relating to inter-regional mobility within Europe, the role of small towns in regional economies and on the translation of sustainability principles into local spatial planning policies both within the UK and across the European Union. I have also researched and written on the role of neighbourhoods (as actors) in public policy relating to climate change adaptation and urban regeneration.
Please feel free to contact me to discuss regional studies in the South West of England.”
Please note: The South West Branch is a limited agent for the Regional Studies Association but without any authority to incur financial liability for that Association.