ERSA Prize in Regional Science 2026 Revealed

ERSA Prize 2026 awarded to Prof. André Torre

Distinguished researcher at INRAE, Paris-Saclay & AgroParisTech, and former ERSA President, his work on proximity & territorial development has shaped regional science.

🏆 Award ceremony: 28 Aug, ERSA Congress in Sofia

Volume 6

Check out the latest paper:

What do regional governments write about climate change on their websites? A natural language processing study of German regions

Authors: Moritz Schütz, Sebastian Losacker, Stefan Hennemann

more information about this issue

📢 Call for Papers – Global Challenges and Regional Science (GCRS)

The European Regional Science Association (ERSA) invites submissions to its newest journal, published by Elsevier.

Since its launch in 2025, GCRS has achieved:

• Immediacy Index: 1.53 (leading among peer journals)

• 100 days average from submission to acceptance

• Strong trajectory toward Scopus indexation

⏳ 100% APC Waiver available for submissions received by May 31, 2026.

After this date, the standard APC of USD 1,800 will apply.

Take advantage of this opportunity to publish high-quality, Open Access research with rapid editorial turnaround.

Journal submission website:

https://www.editorialmanager.com/gcrs/default.aspx

Volume 18, Issue 8

Check out the latest paper:

The Means of Prediction: How AI Really Works (and Who Benefits), Maximilian Kasy. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, USA (2025), 218

Author: Amitrajeet A. Batabyal

more information about this issue

Papers in Regional Science (PiRS)

Volume 105, Issue 3

Latest Article:

The “borrowed-size” effect in carbon reduction: Does the spatial structure of urban agglomeration matter?

Author: Honghong Wei, Ying Wang

more information about this issue

Latest Article: The General Urban Distortion Propagation Law: A Novel Dynamic Mathematical Framework for Modeling Shock Propagation and Recovery in Complex Urban Systems

Authors: Thaer Ayasreh

more

New Issue (1/2026)

Cross-Border Cooperation for Research and Innovation in the Alpine Region. An Explorative Study of the European Smart Specialization Strategy

Authors: Giuseppe De Luca, Matteo Landoni

Explore the issue

Latest Article: Structural Transformation and Spatial Dependencies in Turbulent Times: Evolution of Regional Inter-Industrial Linkages in Greece

by Elias Giannakis

Access to all publications here

Investigaciones Regionales – Journal of Regional Research has published the 64^rd Issue, the first volume corresponding to 2026.

Latest article: «A test of the relationship between the Pareto exponent and sample size»

Authors: Rafael González-Val, Fernando Sanz-Gracia

You can access all the articles at: https://investigacionesregionales.org/en/revista/numero-64/

We invite authors to submit papers at https://investigacionesregionales.org/en/envio-de-articulos/submission-of-papers-and-others-contributions/

Vol.19, No.2, Winter, Issued December 2025

Latest Article:»A community context perspective on community-led local development under the LEADER programme»

Authors:  Daniel Pop, Marton Balogh, Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania

More information about this issue here

Check out the journal’s latest Varia issue

This varia issue brings together five original contributions on immigrant integration in France through a territorial lens, citizens’ preferences in town centre renewal projects, social housing’s proximity to polluting sites in France, social capital and fiscal behavior in Spanish municipalities and lobster fishing conflicts approached through game theory.

more

Editor-in.Chef: José Cadima Ribeiro

Co-Editors: Conceição Rego e João Marques

Published: 27-04-2026

https://www.review-rper.com/index.php/rper/issue/view/74

Current Issue: Volume 21, Issue 1 (2026)

This thematic issue comprises of papers on globalisation and topics and/or researchers from the Global South.

More information about this issue here.

The journal published for the first time an editorial with the list of journal articles that share data and code. This can be seen here.

We are pleased to invite submissions to a Special Issue for the Journal of Economic Geography on: “Advancing Economic Geography with AI: Opportunities, Challenges and Innovations.”

Official CFP link: https://academic.oup.com/joeg/pages/advancing-economic-geo-ai

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming how we study spatial-economic processes—from text analysis and network-based methods to spatial modeling and GeoAI. While these developments have gained traction in related fields, their integration into economic geography remains uneven. This Special Issue aims to bring together theoretically grounded, methodologically rigorous, and critically reflective research at the intersection of AI and economic geography.

We welcome contributions that explore, for example:

• How can AI reveal new spatial-economic patterns?
• How can unstructured or high-dimensional data (patents, firm reports, mobility traces) inform spatial economic analysis?
• How can AI help rethink concepts like relatedness, agglomeration, spatial inequality, regional development, and global production networks?
• What are the theoretical and ethical implications of using AI in economic geography?
• How can AI insights translate into actionable, place-based policy recommendations?

Paper Development Workshop: Selected contributors will be invited to a one-day online Paper Development Workshop in October 2026. This workshop offers a unique opportunity to receive detailed, one-on-one feedback from the guest editors and invited discussants to refine manuscripts prior to formal submission.

Key Deadlines

• Extended abstracts (1,000 words): June 30, 2026
• Workshop invitations: July 31, 2026
• Draft papers: September 20, 2026
• Full paper submission: January 31, 2027

Submission of abstracts:

Please email: yiou.zhang@tcu.edu, mabb@business.aau.dk and fvdw@hku.hk

The British and Irish Section is delighted to confirm that their 2026 annual conference will take place at Queens University, Belfast on May 13 and 14. Chair of the Local Organising Committee, Dr Kevin Mulligan, says that «the Belfast conference will be a great occasion, and it is wonderful to see the conference returning to Northern Ireland for the first time since 2007».

Belfast is served by two airports, Belfast International Airport and the George Best Belfast City Airport, with good connectivity to the rest of Europe. Dublin Airport has flights to the US, Asia, and Africa and has a direct bus connection to Belfast. Dublin to Belfast is two hours by bus or train. There are also ferry connections to Belfast from Liverpool and Cairnryan in Scotland.

So please mark the date in your diary and keep an eye on the Section website for more details.

16th GfR Summer Conference in Regional Science at WIFO in Vienna

This year’s GfR Summer Conference in Regional Science will take place on 17-18 September 2026 at the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (WIFO) together with the 17th Geoffrey J.D. Hewings Regional Economics Workshop. We are happy to have Hans Koster (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) as keynote speaker.

Extended abstracts from all areas of regional science can be submitted until 15 May 2026.

Find the call for papers with further information & submit here: https://gfr.ersa.org/2026/02/10/16-gfr-sommerkonferenz-am-wifo-16th-gfr-summer-conference/

Submission Deadline approaching: see https://ersa.org/events/german-speaking-section-16th-gfr-summer-conference/

Call for papers – XLVII Annual Scientific Conference

Florence, June 24-26 2026

REGIONS BETWEEN INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY: THE CHALLENGES FOR DEVELOPMENT POLICIES

The Italian Association of Regional Science (A.I.S.Re), the Italian section of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI), announces its 47th Annual Scientific Conference.

The conference, which welcomes contributions from national and international scholars across a variety of disciplines related to regional science, will be held at the Dipartimento di Scienze per l’Economia e l’Impresa, Università di Firenze, Polo delle Scienze Sociali di Novoli, Florence.

More information: here

The call for the AISRe Summer School is open.

Here you can find detailed information: https://www.aisre.it/7th-summer-school-aisre-salerno-2026/

Title: Green Transformation and Inequalities: New Challenges for Regional Policies (Salerno, Italy, 25-29 May 2026)

Call for Papers | 33rd APDR Congress, June 30-July 3, 2026, Polytechnic University of Cávado and Ave, Barcelos, Portugal

The APDR invites regional scientists, economists, managers, sociologists, geographers, urban planners, engineers, policy makers, and researchers of related disciplines to participate in the 33rd APDR Congress with the theme «Interregional Governance, Cohesion and Sustainability: Overcoming Territorial Inequalities for a Balanced Future» that will be held from 2 to 3 of July, 2026, at the Polytechnic University of Cávado and Ave, Barcelos, Portugal. On June 30 and July 1, 2026, just before the main conference, a Sustainable Regional Development Academy will be organized for a limited number of participants.

The theme “Interregional Governance, Cohesion and Sustainability: Overcoming Territorial Inequalities for a Balanced Future” underscores the growing importance of collaborative frameworks that promote equitable and sustainable development across regions. In the face of persistent territorial disparities, effective interregional governance emerges as a key mechanism for fostering cohesion, resilience, and shared prosperity. By integrating economic, environmental, social, and cultural dimensions, this approach seeks to ensure that sustainability is achieved not only within individual regions but also across territorial boundaries, paving the way toward a more balanced and inclusive future.

Abstracts Submission deadline extended:

• May 4, 2026, for the 2026 APDR Congress

Authors should submit their abstracts through the online submission system by following the link https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/APDR2026

Looking forward to hosting you in Barcelos, Portugal!

The Organizing Committee and the Board of APDR

33rd APDR Congress

Call for Applications

2 SUSTAINABLE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY June 30-July 1, 2026, IPCA, Barcelos, Portugal

Places are limited to 25 Participants

Apply Now

About the Academy

The Academy is a two-day format, just before the 2026 APDR conference (2-3 July) at the Polytechnic University of Cávado and Ave, Barcelos (included in the registration fee), including: outstanding Lecturers, presentations by participants, and a field visit.

During the Sustainable Regional Development Academy, the participants will:

• Develop a collaborative research project based on the case study of Águas do Norte, S.A.
• Understand the specifics of wastewater treatment and the supply chain value in the water sector.
• Identify problems related to the decarbonisation of wastewater treatment plants, considering different perspectives (e.g., economic, financial, social, and environmental).
• Design a strategic plan proposal aimed at solving the problem of decarbonisation of wastewater treatment plants.
• Present and discuss the proposed solution to the identified problem.

Application Submission deadline extended:

• May 31, 2026, for the 2nd Sustainable Regional Development Academy

here more information

ERSA – Polish Section Annual Meeting, 25-26 May 2026 in Katowice, Poland

Keynote Speaker: Andrea Caragliu, Professor of Regional and Urban Economics, Politecnico di Milano. RSAI Fellow.

The event is organized in partnership with the International Scientific Conference “Cities of the Future – The Future in the City”, focusing on

the central theme Urban Dynamics in Interdisciplinary Research: From Diagnosis to Vision. It will feature presentations addressing the

development of cities and the challenges impacting them, as well as the dynamics of their surrounding regions.

Submit your extended abstract at:

https://www.ue.katowice.pl/en/events/cities-of-the-future-the-future-in-the-city/organizational-information/submissions-and-publications-call-for-papers.html

More information at:

https://www.ue.katowice.pl/en/events/cities-of-the-future-the-future-in-the-city.html

Dear colleagues,

We would like to inform you that, at this stage, we already have 4 confirmed Special Sessions for the AECR 2026 Conference. However, we expect this number to grow and strongly encourage you to submit new session proposals as soon as possible.

Having a sufficient number of Special Sessions in advance will help participants better align their contributions and submit their work to the most suitable thematic tracks.

The Organizing Committee and the Scientific Committee invite you to propose Special Sessions until May 15^th, which is the submission deadline. To propose a session, please send the title of the Special Session, the name(s) of the organizer(s), and an abstract in Spanish and English to:

info@aecr.org

Please note that registration is required to submit and manage contributions for both special and regular sessions. Participants who registered last year can use their existing username and password at:

https://reunionesdeestudiosregionales.org/barcelona2026/en/user/

If you have forgotten your username and/or password, please click on:

https://reunionesdeestudiosregionales.org/barcelona2026/wp-login.php?action=lostpassword

Enter your email address to recover your account details.

Otherwise, please register at:

https://reunionesdeestudiosregionales.org/barcelona2026/en/user/new/

If you are already registered, we strongly recommend that you log in and check that your profile information is complete and up to date. Missing information may cause issues during the submission process.

We encourage you to submit your proposals as soon as possible.

Kind regards,

We look forward to seeing you in Barcelona,

The Organizing Committee

VII SEMINAR FOR NEW ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS – 24^th – 25^th September 2026 – Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism of the University of Alcalá

The Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism of the University of Alcalá, in Madrid, is pleased to host the VII Seminar for New Academic Researchers (SNAR) 2026.

Following the aims and scope of the previous successful editions, the SNAR seeks to gather a group of researchers, academics, and students (PhD candidates or graduates) to share previous, current, and potential future works among all participants rather than presenting a specific research paper, with the main purpose of guiding new researchers in developing their long-term careers.

Thus, we especially invite you to present a line of research (past, present, or future), or a project in which you are involved (or that you are interested in) rather than just a specific article. This year, the seminar will be completed with some training courses for early career researchers.

We encourage contributions on topics related (but not limited) to the diverse fields involved in regional science and input-output analysis: economics, econometrics, urban planning, geography, tourism, inequality, health and welfare, impact evaluation, structural analysis, environmental economics, labour market, etc.

The format of the Seminar will be hybrid: all sessions (i.e., practical courses, panel sessions and lectures) will be available in a virtual platform. Therefore, registration and attendance to the SNAR may be onsite or online, indistinctly.

All the valuable comments and suggestions shared during the meeting will also contribute to building a network of researchers interested in regional economic development and Economic geography.

Please, confirm your willingness to participate in this Seminar by sending your abstract to snar@uah.es, including your name(s), affiliation(s), type of assistance (online or onsite), main topic and 3-5 keywords.

The Seminar will be held on September 24th-25th, 2026, in Alcalá de Henares, Madrid (Spain), at the Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism of the University of Alcalá. Come to check it out and spread the word! Looking forward to meeting you all in Madrid.

Deadlines:

Submission of abstracts: June 20th, 2026.

Notification of acceptance: July 5th, 2026

More information about the event will be sent soon.

More information in attach:

https://sites.google.com/view/snar2026/home

Abstract Modele:

Modelo_abstract_snar7_english

31st International Scientific Conference: REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND DEMOGRAPHIC FLOWS that is going to be held on June 26th, 2026, at University of Niš, Faculty of Economics, Niš, Serbia

Detailed information available on the link:http://www.eknfak.ni.ac.rs/regionalni-razvoj/2026/

Conference titled “EU Regional Development Dialogues: From Policy to Research” will take place on 28–29 September 2026 in Split, Croatia (Technology Park Split) and is organised in cooperation with the Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism, University of Split, the Institute for Development and International Relations (IRMO), and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, together with several institutional partners.

I would like to particularly highlight the second day of the conference, which will be dedicated to a Regional Science Research Incubator Workshop aimed at early-career researchers and PhD students. This workshop is designed as a mentoring and discussion platform where young researchers can present their research ideas or work in progress and receive detailed feedback from senior scholars and leading researchers in regional science. We believe this is a very valuable opportunity for young ERSA members to discuss their research at an early stage, improve their papers, and connect with senior researchers in the field.

More detailed information about the programme and the Research Incubator Workshop can be found here.

Hungarian Regional Science Association 24th Annual Meeting

«The role of universities in regional and urban development»

Debrecen, 21-22 October 2026

University of Debrecen

https://www.mrtt.hu/en/annual_meeting_2026.html

The German-speaking section of ERSA (GfR) is pleased to announce that the Edwin von Böventer Prize 2026 has been awarded to Timm Schärfke for his outstanding presentation, “Debt Finance and Formal Debt Limits: Exploring Municipal Debt Policy”, at the section’s Winter Seminar.

Established in honour of Edwin von Böventer, the first chair of GfR, the Edwin von Böventer Prize has been awarded annually to recognize excellent contributions by early-career researchers since 1994.

A list of previous prize winners is available here:

https://gfr.ersa.org/edwin-von-boeventer-preis/

PhD Excellence Award 2026: Outstanding Doctoral Research in the Circular Economy

Have you recently completed your PhD? The European Chair of Excellence on Circular Economy and Territories invites applications for the PhD Excellence Award 2026.

The award recognises a doctoral thesis defended in 2025 that makes a significant contribution to knowledge and demonstrates relevance for real-world transitions.

Apply before 8 May 2026

Winner revealed in early June

More information here!

The book sheds light on how different European countries have addressed the challenges of increased housing demand in the wake of significant refugee influxes, including Ukrainian displaced persons. Contributors evaluate the effectiveness of New Public Management arrangements and multi-dimensional governance systems in refugee housing provision in non-urban areas, offer insights into diverse approaches and share good-practices.