Remaking Regional Economies

📘 About This Book

Since the early 1980s, the region has been central to thinking about the emerging character of the global economy. In fields as diverse as business management, industrial relations, economic geography, sociology, and planning, the regional scale has emerged as an organizing concept for interpretations of economic change. This book is both a critique of the "new regionalism" and a return to the "regional question," including all of its concerns with equity and uneven development. It will challenge researchers and students to consider the region as a central scale of action in the global economy. At the core of the book are case studies of two industries that rely on skilled, innovative, and flexible workers - the optics and imaging industry and the film and television industry. Combined with this is a discussion of the regions that constitute their production centers. The authors’ intensive research on photonics and entertainment media firms, both large and small, leads them to question some basic assumptions behind the new regionalism and to develop an alternative framework for understanding regional economic development policy. Finally, there is a re-examination of what the regional question means for the concept of the learning region. This book draws on the rich contemporary literature on the region but also addresses theoretical questions that preceded "the new regionalism." It will contribute to teaching and research in a range of social science disciplines.

📖 Summary

Since the early 1980s, the concept of the region has taken center stage in discussions regarding the nature of the global economy. Across various disciplines such as business management, industrial relations, economic geography, sociology, and urban planning, the regional scale has become a primary organizing framework for interpreting rapid economic change. Remaking Regional Economies by Susan Christopherson serves as both a thoughtful critique of prevailing theories known as the new regionalism and a deliberate return to the foundational regional question. This enduring question encompasses all of the traditional concerns regarding economic equity, social justice, and the persistent problem of uneven development across different geographical areas. Published in 2007 and spanning 207 pages, the book challenges both academic researchers and university students to critically evaluate how the region functions as a central scale of action within the broader global marketplace. Rather than accepting generalized assumptions about how regions naturally thrive or adapt in a borderless world, Christopherson urges readers to look deeper into the structural realities that shape local economic landscapes. At the absolute core of the book are detailed case studies examining two distinct industries that rely heavily on skilled, innovative, and flexible workers: the optics and imaging industry, and the film and television industry. By analyzing how these particular sectors operate, organize labor, and interact with specific geographic locations, the author provides concrete empirical grounding for her theoretical arguments. Throughout the text, Christopherson demonstrates how modern economic policies and popular regionalist doctrines often overlook the deep disparities that exist both within and between regions. The case studies illuminate the complex pressures faced by workers and firms in dynamic industries, contrasting the romanticized view of regional innovation clusters with the gritty realities of market volatility, labor flexibility, and uneven capital investment. By focusing on optics, imaging, film, and television, the book highlights sectors where talent and adaptability are paramount, yet the geographic outcomes remain uneven. Ultimately, Remaking Regional Economies calls for a renewed intellectual engagement with the spatial dimensions of capitalism, pushing scholars and practitioners to re-evaluate the true social costs and distributional consequences of regional economic strategies in a globally interconnected era.

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