This study deals with the relationship between communications networks and economic structure in medium-sized Swedish towns 1850-1970. Medium-sized towns have been defined as those which were ranked 4th-20th in terms of population at two points in time: in the year 1900, when industry had established a foothold and the most important railways had been built, and in the year 1970, at the end of the period studied. This means that the group studied comprises 22 towns. The communications networks which are examined are shipping, railways and roads. The economic structure is studied at various levels from economic sectors to sub-branches.Two measures have been constructed for the purpose of establishing the positions of the towns in the communications networks: accessibility and nodality. The former is calculated on the basis of distance from other towns and their populations. The latter is computed via quantification of the towns' access to the links of the respective networks and an assessment of the quality of these.Statistical relation analyses of correlation and regression type have been the principal method of analysis, which has been supplemented, however, by information culled from urban monographs and other studies.The study shows that there is a relationship between communications networks, primarily the railways, and the transformation of the towns' economic structures during the first half of the period studied. The predominant alignment of this relationship appears to be that the structural transformation precedes the expansion of the railways. Among the various economic sectors, the relationship between industry and the railways is the clearest. The relationship changes direction with the passage of time and can be divided into four phases:1.1850s - 1870s. The towns with strongest population and industrial growth attract railways to themselves and are themselves most active in expanding the railways. A weak correlation between accessibility of towns in the shipping network and industry dwindles away when the railways begin to expand.2.1870s - 1900. The relationship between industry and railways is two-way.3. 1900-1950.The building of the most important railways is completed. Industry continues to adapt to accessibility within the railway network.4.After 1950. The medium-sized towns begin to be deindustrialised as the service sector undergoes vigorous growth. The correlation between industry and railways weakens.On the other hand a supplementary study of conditions at regional level shows that railway expansion preceded structural change. In the rural parts of Sweden the railways were an important driving force behind urbanisation and industrialisation, and they created a special type of new population centre -"station villages", as they were called - which came to function as industrial focal points in the countryside. Many of these station villages rose to the status of towns later on.At lower levels of the economic structure the relationships between economic activities and communications networks are not statistically guaranteed as a rule. This is interpreted to mean that at first it was only large aggregates such as population density and total industry that were capable of influencing railway expansion. In similar fashion the railways later became a factor exercising influence primarily at the macro level, while at the micro level they formed only a base on which a number of other location factors were collected and evaluated before the individual firms reached their decisions. / digitalisering@umu

This work explores the connections between the constructed representations of places based on local histories, the processes of tradition reinvention and the strategies of regional development in two Russian regions. This analysis also outlines the context created by the external to the regions influences and the associated with them local conditions.

Regioner blir allt vanligare arbetsområden, något som EU uppmuntrar genom att avskaffa gränshinder och finansiera regionala projekt via strukturfonderna. Det har dock gjorts få studier kring gränsöverskridande samarbeten gällande turism. Denna studie vill belysa vilka faktorer som påverkar framgången hos ett sådant samarbete genom att studera Sundsvall, Östersund och Trondheim, vilka tillsammans bildar den så kallade SÖT-regionen. Syftet är att ta reda på om det finns förutsättningar för ett turistiskt samarbete mellan Sundsvall, Östersund och Trondheim. För att ta reda på detta studeras hinder respektive möjligheter för ett gränsöverskridande turistiskt samarbete. Studien undersöker även huruvida ett samarbete skulle vara motiverat, och i så fall vilket typ, samt om det finns förutsättningarna för SÖT-regionen att skapa en funktionell region för turismen. För att besvara frågeställningarna har personliga intervjuer genomförts med yrkesverksamma inom turismnäringen i regionen. Informanterna arbetar alla med att utveckla turismnäringen på antingen kommunal eller regional nivå. De teoretiska utgångspunkter denna studie utgår från berör region- och destinationsbegreppet, turism som fenomen och tillväxtskapare, regionernas nya roll, transporter och kommunikationer, konkurrenskraft och platsmarknadsföring, relationen mellan turism och internationella gränser, samt turistiska samarbeten över nationsgränser. En egen modell har konstruerats för att sammanställa de hinder gällande gränsöverskridande turistiska samarbeten som framkommer i den teoretiska referensramen. Modellen anpassas sedan till förhållandena i SÖT-regionen. I den avslutande diskussionen framkommer därmed att hindren för ett turistiskt samarbete mellan Sundsvall, Östersund och Trondheim är fler än möjligheterna. Hindren bygger dock till stor del på svårigheter gällande ett samarbete mellan de lokala turismföretagen i regionen, samt på svårigheter gällande gemensam marknadsföring. Däremot finns inga större hinder för ett samarbete mellan de offentliga aktörerna i kommunerna. Slutsatsen som dras är att ett offentligt samarbete, genom erfarenhetsutbyten och försäljning av gemensamt paketerade turismprodukter, är motiverat. Vidare är möjligheterna att skapa en funktionell region för turismen begränsade. / Regions are becoming more important as areas of power, something that the EU encourages by eliminating border barriers and by financing regional projects through the Structural Funds. However, there have been few studies of cross-border cooperation regarding tourism. This study wants to shed light on the factors that influence the success of such cooperation by studying Sundsvall, Östersund and Trondheim, which together form the so-called SÖT-region. The purpose of the study is to find out whether Sundsvall, Östersund and Trondheim have the prerequisites to form a touristic cooperation. The obstacles and opportunities for cross-border cooperation in the SÖT-region are studied, as well as whether a partnership could be justified, and if so, what kind. Finally, the prerequisites for the SÖT-region to create a functional region for tourism are investigated. To answer the questions personal interviews have been conducted with professionals working in the tourism industry within the region. The informants are all involved in developing the tourism industry on either a municipal or a regional level. The theoretical framework of this study concerns the regional and destination concept, tourism as a phenomenon and growth creator, the regions’ new role, transport and communications, competitiveness and site promotion, the relationship between tourism and international borders, and tourism partnerships across international boundaries. To summarize the obstacles regarding cross-border cooperation in tourism that occurs in the theoretical framework, a model has been created. The model is then adapted to fit the conditions in the SÖT-region. The conclusion then shows that the barriers for a touristic cooperation between Sundsvall, Östersund and Trondheim are more than the possibilities. The obstacles, however, are based largely on the difficulties regarding cooperation between local tourism businesses in the region, as well as difficulties regarding joint marketing. However, there are no major obstacles to cooperation between public actors. The conclusion is that public cooperation regarding exchanging experiences and sales of common packaged tourism products is justified. Furthermore, it appears that the ability to create a functional region for tourism is limited.

The research is to study how the difference of economic development between cities is from by observing the change in investment. The different main bodies of investment will make different investment decisions in different stage of life cycle of urban industries. The state-owned units are policy tools, and will invest in urban infrastructure, which is not for profit. In contrast, the only goal of non-state owned enterprises is to maximize the profit, but evade the risk, so they will invest in any profitable items. Finally, the non-state investment will exceed the state investment, and to be more and more important in a city. I select fifty big cities in china to empirically analyze the proposition, and the result indicate that the fixed-investment of non-state sector have exceeded the fixed-investment of the state sector in coastal cities, and the fixed-investment of the state sector is still more than the fixed-investment of non-state sector in inland cities. Under the condition that the goal of government policy is to raise the standard of the infrastructure of inland cities, and that the most industries of coastal cities are staying in industrial growth period, the cities with higher level of economic development grow fast more.

For the past decades, culture has been given a role as a factor for local and regional development. But what is meant by development and in what ways culture can be of importance in this aspect can be unclear. This thesis examines the perception of the role for local and regional development of one specific cultural place and network – the cultural cooperative Not Quite in Fengersfors, Sweden. I study the way the role as developer is expressed and interpreted in the discourse of the cultural workers who are members of the network and in the discourse of public cultural policy in the region Västra Götaland and in Åmål municipality. The study shows that there are both similarities and differences between the discourses concerning how the role as developer is expressed. What differs is the focus on economic growth, which is expressed to be of great importance in the public cultural policy discourse. The cultural workers within Not Quite express a lack of interest in economic growth, or even a negative attitude towards it. They instead express a ”discourse of meaning”. For them, the main purpose of their artistic work is to create meaning and value for other people rather than economic growth. However, the practical effects of the differences seem quite small. There seem to be a balance between the different kinds of development Not Quite is expected to contribute to, and the cultural workers express a relaxed attitude to goals and expectations from the Västra Götaland region and Åmål municipality.

In 1999 the Swedish Parliament decided about 15 environmental goals aimed to be achieved in time for the next generation. For example physical social planning must be based on programs and strategies how cultural-historical values has been attended, so called programs of cultural heritage. By law the Swedish municipalities are responsible for reaching these goals by creating program of cultural heritage. But only a few of the municipalities have these programs, meaning that many municipalities need to create programs of cultural heritage in the next five years. The aim of this report is to present a model of analysis on programs of cultural heritage in municipalities for preservation and development of cultural environments. By testing the model on the municipalities of Osby and Tomelilla methods on how to create a new program of cultural heritage or how to complete existing documents are formulated. One of the conclusions is that one document, program of cultural heritage, functions as landscape analysis, model of cultural valuation and strategy of developing cultural values. One condition is that the program of cultural heritage is established in social planning in the municipality. Two case-studies, the Osby and Tomelilla programs of cultural heritage with text-analysis and interviews, constitutes the study. The municipalities do not use these programs in full extension, often based on ignorance. When the program isn’t established with politicians or employees it can’t be established with citizens. The study shows great differences between the program in Tomelilla which can be applied to the physical social planning, and the program in Osby which can’t. The conclusion is that the program needs to be adjusted for the cause if the program can’t be applied in the hysical social planning in the municipality. The common meaning in the municipalities is that cultural heritage is a positive factor, which makes it possible to reach the environmental goals, regional development, tourism et cetera. One important part in a program of cultural heritage is to erase the boundaries between nature, recreation and culture by finding the starting point in the specific environment, not based on the administrative responsibility.

Résumé Depuis le début des années 1990, la recherche sur le développement régional a pris une importance considérable dans les disciplines de l’économie et de la géographie dans la plupart des pays. De nombreuses études ont été consacrées à ce sujet et l’on constate une approche analytique de plus en plus sophistiquée. Que les économies pauvres ont tendance à converger vers les pays riches, ou bien à diverger au fil du temps est une question qui a attiré l'attention des décideurs et des universitaires depuis quelques décennies. Convergence ou de divergence économique est un sujet d'intérêt et de débat, non seulement pour valider ou non les deux modèles principaux de croissance qui sont considérés comme concurrent (l’approche néo-classique et celle des approches de croissance endogène), mais aussi pour ses implications pour les publiques politiques. En se basant sur une analyse des politiques de développement régional et des analyses statistiques de la convergence et des disparités régionales, les objectifs de cette thèse sont de tenter de fournir une explication des différents processus et des modèles de développement économique régional poursuivis dans le cas de territoires immenses en utilisant le Canada et la Chine comme études de cas, d'entreprendre une analyse des différents facteurs et des forces motrices qui sous-tendent le développement régional dans ces deux pays, et d'explorer à la fois les réussites et les échecs apparents dans les politiques de développement régional en comparant et contrastant les expériences de développement régional et les modèles de ces deux pays. A fin d'atteindre cet objectif, la recherche utilise une approche multi-scalaire et des méthodes de mesure multidimensionnelle dans le cadre des analyses sur les disparités « régionales » entre les macro régions (sous-ensembles de provinces) des deux pays, des provinces et des régions urbaines sélectionnées, dans le but ultime d’identifier des problèmes existants en termes de développement régional et de pouvoir proposer des solutions. Les étapes principales de la recherche sont : 1. La cueillette des données statistiques pour le Canada et la Chine (incluant les provinces de Québec et de Xinjiang) pour une gamme d’indicateurs (voir ci-dessous). 2. D’entreprendre une analyse de chaque dimension dans les deux juridictions: Population (p.ex. composition, structure, changement); Ressources (p. ex. utilisation, exploitation de l’énergie); Environnement (p.ex. la pollution); et le Développement socioéconomique (p.ex. le développement et la transformation des secteurs clé, et les modèles de développement rural et urbain), et les disparités changeantes par rapport à ces dimensions. 3. La définition d’une typologie de différents types de région en fonction de leurs trajectoires de développement, ce qui servira pour critiquer l’hypothèse centre-périphérie. 4. Le choix d’une région métropolitaine dans chaque juridiction (province). 5. D’entreprendre une analyse temporelle des événements clé (politiques, investissements) dans chaque région et les facteurs impliqués dans chaque événement, en utilisant l’information documentaire générale et des agences institutionnelles impliqués actuellement et dans un passée récent. Cette étude a tenté d'expliquer les schémas et les processus des deux économies, ainsi que la présentation d'études de cas qui illustrent et examinent les différences dans les deux économies à partir de l’échelle nationale jusqu’au niveau régional et provincial et aussi pour certaines zones urbaines. Cette étude a essayé de répondre aux questions de recherche comme: Est-il vrai que les pays avec des plus grandes territoires sont associés avec des plus grandes disparités interrégionales? Quel est le résultat des comparaisons entre pays développés et pays en développement? Quels sont les facteurs les plus importants dans le développement économique de vastes territoires dans les pays développés et pays en développement? Quel est le mécanisme de convergence et de divergence dans les pays développés et, respectivement, les pays en développement? Dans l'introduction à la thèse, le cadre général de l'étude est présenté, suivie dans le chapitre 1 d'une discussion sur les théories et les concepts utilisés dans la littérature théorique principale qui est pertinent à l'étude. Le chapitre 2 décrit la méthodologie de recherche. Le chapitre 3 présente une vue d'ensemble des politiques de développement économique régional et les programmes du Canada et de la Chine dans des périodes différentes à différentes échelles. Au chapitre 4, la convergence des deux pays à l'échelle nationale et la convergence provinciale pour chaque pays sont examinés en utilisant différentes méthodes de mesure telles que les méthodes traditionnelles, la convergence bêta et la convergence sigma. Dans le chapitre le plus complexe, le chapitre 5, les analyses comparatives sont présentées à l'aide de données statistiques, à partir des analyses des cas régionaux et provinciaux retenus des deux pays. Au chapitre 6, ces dispositions sont complétées par une analyse des régions urbaines choisies, qui permet également des aperçus sur les régions les plus périphériques. Dans la recherche proposée pour cette thèse, la politique, la population, le revenu, l'emploi, la composition industrielle, l'investissement, le commerce et le facteur de la migration sont également pris en compte comme facteurs importants de l'analyse régionale compte tenu de la superficie du territoire des deux pays et les différences de population entre eux. Cette thèse a évalué dans quelle mesure les politiques gouvernementales ont réussi à induire la convergence régionale ou ont encore ont creusé davantage les disparités régionales, ce qui implique nécessairement une évaluation de la durabilité des patrons et des programmes de développement régional. Cette étude a également mis l'accent sur les disparités régionales et la politique de développement régional, les comparaisons entre pays, pour mesurer la convergence entre les pays et entre les régions, y compris l'analyse spatiale, d'identifier les facteurs les plus actifs tels que la population, les ressources, la politique, l'urbanisation, les migrations, l'ouverture économique et leurs différents rôles dans le développement économique de ces grands territoires (au Canada et Chine). Les résultats empiriques et les processus de convergence et de divergence offrent un cadre intéressant pour l'examen de la trajectoire de développement régionales et les disparités régionales dans les deux économies. L'approche adoptée a révélé les différentes mosaïques complexes du développement régional dans les deux pays. Les résultats de cette étude ont démontré que la disparité en termes de revenu régional est une réalité dans chaque zone géographique, et que les causes sont nombreuses et complexes. Les deux économies ont certains parallèles dans la mise en œuvre des politiques de développement économique régional, mais il existe des différences importantes aussi et elles se sont développées à différentes vitesses. Les deux économies se sont développées depuis la Seconde Guerre mondiale, mais la Chine a connu une croissance rapide que le Canada comme témoignent de nombreux indicateurs depuis 1980. Cependant, la Chine est maintenant confrontée à un certain nombre de problèmes économiques et sociaux, y compris les disparités régionales marquées, un fossé toujours croissant entre les revenus ruraux et urbains, une population vieillissante, le chômage, la pauvreté et la dégradation rapide de l'environnement avec toujours plus de demandes en énergie. Le développement économique régional en Chine est plus déséquilibré. Le Canada accuse un degré de disparités régionales et provinciales moins important que la Chine. Dans les cas provinciaux, il existe d'importantes différences et de disparités dans la structure économique et spatiale du Québec et du Xinjiang. Les disparités infra provinciales sont plus grandes que celles à l’échelle des provinces et des grandes régions (des sous-ensembles de provinces). Les mécanismes de convergence et de divergence dans les deux pays sont différents. Les résultats empiriques et les processus de convergence et de divergence offrent un cadre intéressant pour l'examen de la trajectoire de développement régionale et les disparités régionales dans les deux économies. Cette étude démontre également que l'urbanisation (les métropoles et les villes) s’avère être le facteur le plus actif et contribue à l'économie régionale dans ces grands territoires. L'ouverture a joué un rôle important dans les économies des deux pays. La migration est un facteur majeur dans la stimulation de l'économie des deux pays mais de façons différentes. Les résultats empiriques démontrent que les disparités régionales ne peuvent pas être évitées et elles existent presque partout. Il n'y a pas une formule universelle et de politiques spécifiques sont de mise pour chaque région. Mais il semble possible pour les décideurs politiques nationaux et régionaux d’essayer de maintenir l'écart à une échelle raisonnable pour éviter l'instabilité sociale. / Abstract Whether poor economies tend to converge towards rich ones or else to diverge over time is an issue that has attracted the attention of policy-makers and academics alike for some decades. Economic convergence or divergence is a topic of con¬siderable interest and debate, not only for validating or otherwise the two leading and competing growth models (the neoclassical and the endogenous growth approaches) but also for its policy-oriented implications. The conflicting predictions of the two alternative theoretical frameworks (endogenous versus exogenous development approaches) have given rise to an explosion of empirical studies especially since 2000. Significant progress has been made in dynamic modeling under the neoclassical model and endogenous growth models. The new economic geography approach, which emerged in the early 1990s, has gained much attraction for its arguments on centralizing and decentralizing forces in geographic economic space, which could lead to convergence or divergence of regional incomes. A similar set of issues and questions have been posed in relation to patterns of convergence or divergence between different regions of a given country. Based on an analysis of regional development policies and statistical analyses of convergence and regional disparities, the research objectives of this thesis are to attempt to provide an explanation of the different processes and patterns of regional economic development in large territories (countries) using Canada and China as examples, to undertake an analysis of the different factors and driving forces underlying regional development in both countries, and to explore both the apparent successes and failures in regional development policy through comparing and contrasting the regional development experiences and models of these two countries. In order to achieve this objective, the research uses a multiscalar approach and multivariate measurement methods in the course of investigating regional disparities across both countries’ macro regions (sub-sets of provinces), provinces and selected city regions. The overall approach has involved: 1. Gathering statistical data for Canada and China (including provinces as well as the selected provinces of Xinjiang and Quebec) for a range of variables (see below). 2. Undertaking an analysis of each selected dimension in the two jurisdictions: Population (e.g. composition, structure, change); Resources (e.g. energy resources); Environment (e.g. pollution); and Socio-Economic Development (e.g. development and change for key economic sectors, and rural and urban development patterns), and changing disparities on these dimensions. 3. Defining a typology of different types of region based on development trajectories that are used as the basis for questioning the core-periphery hypothesis. 4. Selecting a metropolitan region in each jurisdiction. 5. Undertaking a temporal analysis of major events (policies, investment,) and the factors involved in these events in each chosen region, using statistical and documentary evidence. This study has tried to explain the patterns and processes of both economies as well as presenting case studies which illustrate and examine the differences in both economies from the national to regional and provincial scales and for some urban areas. This study has focused on trying to answer research questions such as: Is it true that large territorial countries have larger interregional disparities? What are the results of comparisons between developed and developing countries? What are the most influential indicators (in a statistical sense) in the economic development of large territories in developed and developing countries? What are the mechanisms of convergence and divergence in large territories in developed and developing countries? This thesis has assessed whether government policies have succeeded in inducing regional convergence or have further widened regional disparities, thus necessarily involving an evaluation of the sustainability of patterns and programmes of regional development. This study also focused on regional disparity and regional development policy, and cross-country comparisons, for measuring convergence between countries and across regions including spatial analysis, and identified the most active factors such as population, resources, policy, urbanization, migration, openness and their different roles in the economic development of large territories (in Canada and China). The empirical results and the process of convergence and divergence offered an interesting framework for examining the regional development trajectory and regional disparities in both economies. In the introduction to the thesis, the general framework of the study is presented, followed in Chapter 1 by a discussion of the theories and concepts used in the principal theoretical literature relevant to the study. Chapter 2 outlines the research methodology. Chapter 3 presents an overall perspective of the regional economic development policies and programmes of Canada and China in different periods at different scales. In Chapter 4, cross-country convergence between Canada and China at the national scale and within country provincial convergence for each country is examined using different measurement methods such as traditional methods, and beta convergence and sigma convergence analyses. In the most complex chapter, Chapter 5, comparative analyses are presented using statistical data, moving from analyses of the two countries to analyses of the broad regions and the provincial cases retained. In Chapter 6, this is complemented by an analysis of selected urban regions which also provides some insights on the more peripheral rural regions. In this thesis, policy, population, income, employment, industrial composition, investment, trade and migration factors are also considered important factors of regional analysis given the territorial size of the two countries and the population differences between them. The approach adopted revealed the different complex mosaics of regional development in both countries. The results of this study demonstrated that disparity in regional income is a reality in every geographically large area, the causes of which are numerous and complex. Both economies have some parallels in the implementation of regional economic development policies, but there are important differences as well and they have been implemented at different speeds. Both economies have developed since the Second World War but China has grown faster than Canada on many indicators since 1980. However, China is now faced with a number of economic and social problems, including pronounced regional disparities, an increasing rural-urban income gap, an aging population, unemployment, poverty and rapid environmental degradation with ever-increasing energy demands. Regional economic development in China is more unbalanced. Canada has a lesser degree of regional and provincial disparity than China. At the provincial level, there are significant differences and disparities in the economic and spatial structure of Quebec and Xinjiang. Sub-provincial disparity is larger than provincial and broad regional (sub-sets of provinces) disparities. The mechanisms of convergence and divergence in both countries are different. The empirical results and the process of convergence and divergence offered an interesting framework for examining the regional development trajectory and regional disparity in both economies. This study also shows that urbanization (metropolitan and cities) was found to be the most active factor contributing to the regional economy in large territories. Openness has played a significant role in the economies of both countries. Migration is a major factor in boosting the economy in both countries but in different ways. The empirical results show that regional disparity cannot be avoided in either economy. There is not a specific universal formula and policy for every country and region. Regional disparities represent a development challenge in a large territory (or country). The persistence of large regional disparities may pose a threat to a country’s territorial integrity and affect its political unity. But it appears possible for national and regional policy makers to try to keep the disparity at a reasonable scale to avoid social instability.

Lietuvoje vyrauja dideli ir augantys tarpregioniniai skirtumai, kurie matomi ne tik tarp pirmaujančių ir atsiliekančių regionų, bet ir tarp regionų lyderių. Todėl iškyla dilema ar regioninė politika suformuluota ir nukreipta taip, kad ateityje bus pajėgi ne tik skatinti regionų plėtrą, bet ir mažinti netolygumus. Regiono plėtra yra sudėtingas procesas, kuriam suprasti ir paaiškinti tikslinga naudoti ekonominius modelius. Iš ekonominių modelių įvairovės darbe pasirinkta naudoti pritaikytą regionų augimui neoklasikinį augimo modelį, nes būtent šis modelis aiškina regionų netolygaus augimo priežastis, vietinių išteklių pagrindu. Darbą sudaro dvi dalys. Pirmoje dalyje „Regioninė plėtra ir regioninė politika: teoriniai ir taikomieji aspektai“ aprašomos regiono ir regioninės plėtros koncepcijos, teorijos, žmogiškųjų išteklių, kapitalo ir technologijų pažangos įtaka regionų vystymuisi. Šioje dalyje pateikiami regioninės politikos pagrindiniai teoriniai aspektai bei aprašomos regioninės politikos priemonės regionų plėtrai skatinti. Antroje darbo dalyje „Vilniaus ir Alytaus regionų plėtros tyrimas“ socialinių-ekonominių rodiklių pagalba įvertinama Vilniaus ir Alytaus regionų sanglauda ir techninės pažangos augimo modelio pagrindu identifikuojamos netolygaus regionų augimo priežastys. Be to, analizuojama Lietuvos regioninė politika, politikos tikslai ir įgyvendinimo priemonių efektyvumas. Šioje darbo dalyje išskiriama Lietuvos regionų augimo skatinimo specifika, analizuojama Europos... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Regional development becomes important issue of the European Union and Lithuania regional politics, because only developed region can entrench the secured position in the globalized world. Moreover, regional development is closely related with people and their well-being. In order to achieve this, stable and coordinated regional development is needed. This should be done by integrating effective regional policy instruments. Regional development is complexible process. So, economical models is needed and used to explain regional development. From variety of economical models the neoclassical growth model was chosen to explore the causes of widening regional growth disparities. The work consists of two parts. The first part deals with general theoretical and adaptable aspects of the region, its development as well as the regional growth and development models for regional development. In this part the explanation of impact of human resources, capital and technical progress is given. Also, this part proposes the theoretical overview about regional policy, including the conception of regional policy, the instruments which influence regional development. In the second part economical and social indicators are used for analysis of Vilnius and Alytus regions, the convergence of regions is evaluated and regional growth disparities between Vilnius and Alytus regions is evaluated by using neoclassical growth model. The second part analyzes the regional policy and its goals of... [to full text]

The aim of the thesis is to describe and analyse socio-economic changes in northern Sweden. Focus is on the period 1985-2000. Population development, restructuring of economic activities, political and cultural changes are related to a theoretical discussion on the transformation of sparsely populated areas as an outcome of multi-dimensional and interrelated processes. Besides an introductory and concluding section, the thesis contains four papers. The first paper deals with forestry's changed role in the local economy of four municipalities located in the inland areas of upper Norrland. The changes within forestry have been driven by adaptation to global competition and rapid technical development. Even though timber production has increased in some of the municipalities, job losses have greatly reduced the importance of forestry in the local economies. Many employees have left forestry for work in other branches, unemployment or retirement However, relatively few have moved from the area. A multiplier model was employed in order to analyse the impact on the local economy. The second paper deals with population changes in the six northernmost counties. During the 1990s, most municipalities and rural areas in northern Sweden have experienced renewed depopulation. At the same time, some rural areas have shown significant population growth. Three types of rural areas with population growth have been identified. Firstly, there are rural areas within daily commuting distance from regional centres. Secondly, there is a group of rural areas, mainly a number of mountain villages close to the border with Norway, which has benefited from the tourist industry. Finally, there are a few rural areas characterised by attractive residential environments and leisure housing. The third paper is based on a classification of 500 residential areas and villages in the county of Västerbotten into seven types of housing environments. In this way, the county is broken down into a mosaic of housing environments characterised by very different prerequisites for consumption and economic development A complex and dispersed pattern of disadvantaged residential areas all over the county indicates the difficulty in treating counties and municipalities as homogeneous regions. In the fourth paper, focus is on young peoples' attitudes towards staying in or moving to small communities within a local labour market region in northern Sweden. The study is based on telephone interviews with 400 young men and women in the Umeå region. Half the interviewees lived in the university city of Umeå while the others were residents in five rural municipalities surrounding Umeå. In general, the males and females aged 19-25 had a much more positive attitude towards living in rural communities than did those aged 15-18. Nevertheless, only half of the young people already living in the rural municipalities wanted to stay there. Among the young people living in the city, slightly less than 50% showed an interest in moving to the surrounding rural areas, mainly the countryside within commuting distance from the city. The connection between higher education and out-migration of young people from rural areas is also highlighted. / <p>Diss. (sammanfattning) Umeå : Univ., 2002</p> / digitalisering@umu

Place branding is commonly conceptualized with a focus on big cities, such as London, New York and Singapore, building from concepts and models from mainstream branding theory. In contrast to such conceptualizations, this thesis focuses on place branding in small and medium-sized cities. The present thesis aims to study place branding from a geographical perspective. It starts with debates theoretical and empirical understandings of place branding; what it is and how it is affecting the places where it is introduced. The thesis develops and argues for a perspective of territoriality and relationality to place branding discussing concepts, methods and empirical approaches to carry out place branding research using geographical perspectives. Empirically, this thesis focuses on in-depth studies of place branding in small and medium-sized cities in Sweden. By analyzing the development of place branding over the course of time, nuances and aspects of both territorial and relational origin emerge, situating place branding practices within a wider spatial contextualization. Four individual papers are presented, which taken together contribute to the aim of the thesis. Paper 1 introduces the place branding research field in geography and how it has developed; Paper 2 investigates the phenomena of flagship buildings located in small cities and towns; Paper 3 discusses the relationship between policy tourism and place branding; and Paper 4 analyzes how local environmental policies are affected by green place branding. The thesis demonstrates the complex and continuously interchangeable spatial structures and place contexts that create and re-produce the geographies of place branding. Here, research models and methodological examples are presented to illustrate how place branding can be studied from a geographical perspective and thus improve theoretical understandings of place branding. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Manuscript.</p>