Essential Economic Development
A Foundation Course for Local and Regional Economic Development
17 lessons, 2.5 hours. Learn the fundamentals of local and regional economic development for free.
Access the course via our community learning site. Or subscribe via email to get a daily lesson emailed directly to you.
Access via our community learning site:
Access the course via our community learning site here. The 17 lessons are structured as follows:
1. Rationale for Local and Regional Economic Development
2. Overview of themes and functions
3. Understanding economics and economic trends
4. Megatrends
5. Theory of Economic Development
6. Policy
7. Strategy
8. Intelligence & insight
9. Industrial development & clusters
10. Enterprise & entrepreneurship
11. Inward investment / FDI
12. Labour markets
13. Education & skills
14. Economic Participation, Employability and Unemployment
15. Poverty & inequality
16. Place & infrastructure
17. Low carbon, climate change & sustainability
Register here to get free access to the Foundation course’s 17 lessons
Email course: Register below for your 17-Daily lessons by email
Regional Economies: Ford CEO Jim Farley says America is sleepwalking past its ‘essential economy’ crisis. Goldman Sachs just showed how big it really is
Source: Regional Economies Author: Nick Lichtenberg Date published: 2026-04-02 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] America’s AI ambitions may be undone not by a lack of capital or computing power, but by a shortage of electricians. That’s the...
SmartCitiesWorld News: City of Darwin launches new data platform
Source: SmartCitiesWorld News Author: SmartCitiesWorld news team Date published: 2026-04-01 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] The City of Darwin in Australia’s Northern Territory has launched a Data Insights Platform to provide residents and...
Regional Economies: Data centre capacity in India to grow 30% in 2026; investments to cross $180 billion: Report
Source: Regional Economies Author: unknown Date published: 2026-04-01 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] India’s total data centre (DC) stock across major cities is projected to increase by 30 per cent year-on-year in 2026, supported by an...
Local Economies (UK): Data Centers Causing Huge Temperature Spikes for Miles Around Them, Study Suggests
Source: Local Economies (UK) Author: Frank Landymore Date published: 2026-04-01 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] The data centers at the heart of the AI boom are producing so much heat that they’re spiking land temperatures for miles around...
Regional Economies: £1.7Bn investment for Northern Growth Corridor
Source: Regional Economies Author: Vicky Maggiani Date published: 2026-03-31 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] The Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced a substantial £1.7bn investment package targeting urban regeneration and...
Regional Economies: UK house prices rise and economic growth revised up but Iran war clouds outlook – business live
Source: Regional Economies Author: Lauren Almeida Date published: 2026-03-31 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Introduction: UK house prices rise again in MarchGood morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial...
Regional Economies: Does a legacy in manufacturing preclude a future in it?
Source: Regional Economies Author: Stephen Leverton Date published: 2026-03-30 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Originally published on Agglomerations, the Substack newsletter from the Economic Innovation Group. By Kenan Fikri What can...
Local Growth and the United Kingdom: Gloucestershire councils outline goal to join WECA
Source: Local Growth and the United Kingdom Author: kate.jones@newsquest.co.uk | Kate Jones Date published: 2026-03-30 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] In the letter from leaders of six of Gloucestershire’s seven councils - sent to ministers...
The Strategist: Capturing the data centre gold rush is a strategic imperative for Australia
Source: The Strategist Author: David Wroe Date published: 2026-03-25 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] If you were a tech giant that had set up data centres in the Middle East because of the cheap fossil-fuel power and permissive regulatory...