RSA Membership Research Grant Scheme (MeRSA)

Previous and Current Grant Holders

Negotiating Economic Growth and Geopolitical Risks: Regional Impacts and Implications of Chinese investments in the UK, 2000-2020

This project addresses a major and surprisingly under-addressed gap in regional studies, namely the role of geopolitics in regional economic resilience. Through examining whether subnational regions (firms, local authorities and workers) in the UK are willing to trade off national security risks (both real and perceived) for new investments by Chinese firms, the study aims to ascertain and explain the tensions that exist between international geopolitics and subnational growth strategies. In doing so, it integrates geopolitics firmly in the conceptual framing of regional economic resilience.

“I’m delighted to be awarded the MeRSA grant because it offers an excellent opportunity to address a timely issue – the implications and value of investments from Chinese firms – pertaining to regional development in advanced economies. The grant will provide support for obtaining data that highlights how important geopolitics impact subnational regional resilience. I’m very excited to launch this study as I believe it addresses a distinct gap in how we currently understand and conceptualise regional resilience.”

Isaac Kwamena Arthur

Urban Regeneration in Coastal Cities: Proposing a Strategy for Revitalising Old and Historic Buildings in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Area, Ghana

While the concept of adaptive reuse is widely prescribed in the existing literature as a panacea for revitalising derelict buildings, there seems to be a knowledge gap on how it could be useful in Ghana’s coastal cities. These cities are characterised by many old and historic buildings constructed during Ghana’s colonial era that are decaying due to continuous neglect. Cities’ transformation through regeneration and adaptive reuse of derelict buildings is yet to become a policy priority in Ghana. The increasing demand for buildings for different uses in Ghana’s twin city, Sekondi-Takoradi makes this research important and timely. This research aims to explore the drivers of derelict old and historic buildings in Sekondi, the older part of the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis and to propose a strategy for utilising those buildings. This is deemed necessary for a city which is striving to ensure that its infrastructure, including buildings, keeps pace with the increasing population, a phenomenon largely induced by the in-migration of people in search of oil-related opportunities. The study is grounded in action research design and will rely on a qualitative approach for empirical analysis. I will use interviews, oral histories, building tours and archival materials to construct histories of the case study vicinities in Sekondi and to understand why buildings are being neglected. Additional interviews with owners/families, planners, city authorities, architects and other relevant stakeholders will be used to determine how neglected buildings could be revitalised and given new functional uses. The research is expected to inform local policy on integrating the regeneration of old and historic derelict buildings in the planning schemes of Sekondi-Takoradi as well as provide data on the attributes and history of buildings since such information is rarely documented. Promoting adaptive reuse of historic buildings will create a myriad of economic opportunities for people, contribute to heritage conservation, inspire a sense of community and a basis for the city to reinvent itself.

“I have been an admirer and a member of the Regional Studies Association since I was a PhD student at Aalborg University, Denmark. I feel extremely honoured to be awarded the Regional Studies Association Membership Research Grant. Indeed, it is a dream come true. Besides its usefulness to lessen the financial burden of doing research, the grant has opened a huge door for me to navigate into the research field of urban regeneration and adaptive reuse. I look forward to having an exciting research process with this grant”.

Jon Mikel Zabala-Iturriagagoitia

Designing Regional Innovation Policies from Innovation Scoreboards

This MeRSA project aims to transform the European Innovation Scoreboard into a useful instrument for the definition, measurement and directionality of innovation policies. The project goes beyond the state-of-the-art by developing a technology (i.e. computational software) that measures innovation from multiple perspectives (i.e. glasses): size, efficiency, cross efficiency, technological change, catching-up, network efficiency, scale and scope, saturation and effectiveness. All these perspectives will be developed using mathematical programming techniques to be applied to the set of data provided by the European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) for all European countries and by the Regional Innovation Scoreboard (RIS) for all European regions.

The novelty of this MeRSA research grant lies in that departing from publicly available data, it will develop multiple perspectives that allow capturing the inherent multidimensionality of innovation systems. The project does not intend to discuss the quality and accuracy of the EIS or the RIS data. It will merely use the same set of existing (public) data in the form provided by the EIS and the RIS, but from many different perspectives, to produce an array of robust results, to define more effective policies. To use a metaphor, we will develop a technology equivalent to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), but for assessing innovation systems rather than football, and providing directionality to policy makers rather than to referees.

“In the year 2007 I published the first-ever contribution on the application of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to assess the innovation efficiency of European regions in Regional Studies. Ever since, DEA as a scientific method has gone through a major development, leading to a higher robustness. In fact, some of the publications I have been involved in, dealing with the application of these robust DEA methods. As a result, we have already developed the methodologies to assess some of the dimensions we aim to use in the project: innovation size, efficiency, cross efficiency, technical change and catching up, but these methodologies have been developed at the national level. I usually say that, so far, we have been developing a prototype, and finetuning it to achieve robust results at the national level. Now that we know that the prototype works, our ambition is to scale it up, applying the methodologies that we already have at the regional level, so our conclusions can feed the decisions of regional policy makers.

With the MeRSA grant I expect to achieve the following outcomes: (i) to develop the methodologies that are still missing (i.e. network efficiency, scale, scope, saturation, effectiveness) to assess territorial innovation at national levels; (ii) to extend the application of all of the above dimensions from the national to the regional levels in Europe; (iii) to have a sound evidence-based policy impact that helps to break with the dominant logics of the-more-the-better, so policymaking is not limited to putting more and more resources into innovation systems, but rather seeking for an optimization of the already existing resources to increase the additionality of innovation policies. Having received the MeRSA grant will undoubtedly help me accomplish my vision of developing a technology that makes innovation scoreboards useful for the definition and directionality of innovation policies.”

Watch a video of Jon Mikel describing his research

Maria Siranova

Bank Branch Closings and Local SME Economic Activity in Slovakia – Good Servant but a Bad Master?

Better access to finance has been shown to improve economic growth, both globally and locally. Yet, the ongoing financialization relying on alternative distributional channels (FINTEC industry) challenges the need for physical presence of credit intermediators, local bank branches in particular. Hypothetically, reduction in local bank network, if compensated by new online distributional channels, should therefore have a neutral impact on local businesses activities as well as overall regional economic performance. This project aims to investigate how bank branch closings affect economic performance of individual firms in Slovakia. I will specifically focus on change in economic performance of SME segment (productivity) that represents the cornerstone of regional development in Europe and is hypothesised to be mostly affected by the bank branch closures.

This research aims to deliver relevant knowledge to different groups of stakeholders: policy makers, banking industry, or bank customers. First and foremost, policy makers in charge of competitiveness and industrial policy need to comprehend implications of ongoing structural changes in banking industry. This is true especially when it comes to funding of SME sector, which in Europe constitutes more than 99.8% of all businesses, contributes to 54.6% of total value added and provides employment for 67% of the total active labour force (EC, 2019). However, this sector is also the one most exposed towards the potential credit rationing by banking sector. On the one hand, restricted access to credit due to natural creative destruction in banking industry might be compensated by targeted support of new innovative technological solutions. Potentially, the creative destruction itself might result in market-based innovative solutions without any further involvement of economic policy.

“I am deeply honoured and very grateful to the Regional Studies Association to become a recipient of the MeRSA grant. This award will help me to analyse effects of recently observed re-design of bank branch network that may affect business activity of small and medium enterprises which form a backbone of Slovak economy. Thanks to the grant I hope I will be able to ignite the passion for research also among young generation of students.”

Christophe Sohn

Borders reloaded! The impact of rebordering dynamics on European cross-border regionalism

The overall aim of the project is to investigate the ways in which the hardening of EU’s internal borders in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more broadly the resurgence of borders in the political agenda of states, affect the ideas underpinning cross-border cooperation (CBC) and the discourses of local and regional actors engaged in cross-border region-building. The starting point of the project is the acknowledgement that the on-going dynamics of rebordering are challenging the significance of supposedly open borders for CBC. While the immediate reactions of regional actors and the socio-economic consequences of border closures for European border regions have hold scholars’ attention, the ways in which rebordering may deeply impact actors’ beliefs, claims and imaginaries that underlie their CBC initiatives remains a subject little explored to date.

Based on a discursive-material approach, the project aims at (1) uncovering the conditions and mechanisms through which ideational changes occur in local and regional CBC discourses and (2) examining the implications of these changes for the governance of cross-border regions and their development paths. Empirically, the research relies on the analysis of actors’ discourses in two emblematic cross-border metropolitan regions: Greater Geneva, at the French–Swiss border, and Greater Copenhagen, at the Danish–Swedish border. The analysis of CBC stakeholders’ interview accounts mobilizes a multimodal social semiotics perspective attentive to how different communication artefacts (spoken and written texts, images) combine and are used to create meaning in specific social contexts. Finally, the project aims at translating the research outcomes into insights for policymakers at regional, national and EU levels who seek to address the challenges posed by rebordering to cross-border integration, regional development and cohesion policies.

I am very honoured to be awarded a MeRSA grant. This award will allow me to explore the spatial and political implications of the ‘reloading’ of borders into the cross-border cooperation ‘mindware’, with a potential to have both an academic and policy impact. I am particularly excited by the opportunity to showcase my research and contribute to develop a fruitful dialogue between border studies and the lively RSA community.

Simón Sánchez-Moral

Disentangling COVID-19 as a driving force of path development processes in Spain

This research seeks to further explore path development processes in Spanish regions by analysing the industrial sector’s response to the shortage of medical supplies during the COVID -19 pandemic. This was caused by difficulties in purchasing abroad and interrupted supply chains, especially during the first part of the year 2020. Given this context, the project seeks to study the diversification strategies in existing firms throughout the country, or the creation of new ones, aimed at manufacturing medical instruments and materials. Keeping in mind the factors of a limited time frame and a possible limited spatial impact of this phenomenon, we seek to to contribute to the understanding of how the path development mechanism operates in different regional contexts, while addressing key challenges in the Evolutionary Economic Geography’s research agenda. In particular, the study will examine regional pre-existing conditions for regional diversification. It will emphasize regional knowledge bases, the role of related and unrelated variety, firms’ external connections, as well as routines, conventions and policies within the regional innovation system. The study is based on a mixed-methods approach.

I am very honored to develop the Regional Studies Association Membership Research Grant Scheme (MeRSA). The support by the RSA will help us to contribute to this research agenda and reinforce international collaborations.

For more information about this project, please see the project website.

Carolina Castaldi

“Soft innovation? Towards new narratives on regional capabilities and policies”

The overall aim of the project is to investigate how the inclusion of soft innovation in theoretical, empirical and policy work at the regional level can help creating new narratives on regional capabilities. By ‘soft innovation’ one understands all forms of innovation that are not purely technological or functional. The starting point of the project is the acknowledgement that when it comes to regional capabilities and regional resilience the dominant narrative tends to center around technological capabilities and assume an underlying R&D-driven model of economic growth. Yet, there is increasing awareness that other forms of capabilities and that sectors where formal R&D is not the main source of innovation might also act as drivers of regional resilience.

Theoretically, the project aims at making space for soft innovation capabilities in models of regional resilience by investigating how existing frameworks can be adapted and/or overturned. Empirically, the project aims at developing original metrics of regional capabilities using trademarks and design rights, and linking them to indicators of regional resilience. Finally, the project aims at translating the results from theory and empirics into insights for policymakers to embrace new narratives on regional capabilities.

I am very honored to be awarded one of the MeRSA grants. The award will allow me to showcase my research to the lively RSA community, with a tremendous potential to have both academic and policy impact. I am excited by the opportunity to engage in research that can contribute to widen our perspective on which regional capabilities and innovation types matter for places to thrive.

Adriana Mihaela Soaita

Exploring the nexus between trust, corruption and anti-corruption policies in post-communist Romania

Read the latest publication here: https://regions.regionalstudies.org/ezine/article/romania-digitalization/

The Blog article is available here – Long-distance research during the Covid-19 crisis: trust and corruption in Romania

You can read more about this research here: https://ziarulargesul.ro/municipiul-pitesti-obiect-de-studiu-la-o-universitate-britanica/

THE RESEARCH PUZZLE: It is striking that a great majority of Europeans believe corruption is widespread in their countries, yet few have experienced it. In the least corrupt EU states of Denmark, Finland and Sweden, 20-44% of people thought corruption was widespread but less than 1% indicated they paid or were expected to pay a bribe. The corresponding figures for Romania were 93% and 25%. This paradoxically high difference between belief and experience shows that people’s own meanings of corruption have to be better understood. It begs not only methodological questions of validity and theoretical questions on what exactly people mean by corruption, but it draws attention to broader questions of trust and distrust. While quantitative measures of trust/corruption have become standard survey questions, I argue it is timely for in-depth qualitative examinations – – currently uncommon – – that focus on peoples’ meanings, beliefs and practices. I propose a longitudinal-qualitative study, uniquely enabled by my previous work in 2007/08 in order to unpack this puzzle.

AIMS: To identify the mechanisms ––i.e. discourses, norms, beliefs, social and institutional practices––that link concepts of trust, practices of corruption, and anti-corruption policies in Romania; and to reflect on the social and temporal dynamics of these mechanisms.

WHY ROMANIA? Since 2012 a high-level anticorruption drive has taken place in Romania; over 2,000 high-ranking public executives were convicted, including one prime-minister, 21 MPs and 30 judges. Weakened by governmental/parliamentary acts since 2017, large street protests and the results of the May 2019 referendum have demanded its continuation. These developments posit Romania as a timely and interesting social laboratory to analyse the trust/corruption nexus.

I am delighted to receive a RSA membership grant (MeRSA) for a longitudinal qualitative research on the nexus between trust and corruption. I am thrilled that this award enables me to revisit and re-interview my prior participants in the city of Pitești, Romania, and see how and why their opinions have changed. Romania constitutes a timely and interesting social laboratory given the recent high-profile anti-corruption measures, large anti-corruption street demonstrations, increasing institutional transparency, and yet practices of bribery and favoritism stubbornly persist.

Vassilis Tselios

Political decentralisation and regional poverty in the EU

There is a growing trend for central governments to transfer political authority to subnational tiers of government, known as political decentralisation, as well as a growing and widely accepted recognition of the important role of governments in reducing poverty. The purpose of this project is to examine whether and how an increase in political decentralisation (which is a regional policy instrument) reduces European regional poverty rate and social exclusion (which are regional policy aims), after controlling for some economic, social, political and geographical charactersitics of the European regions. The association between regional policy instruments and regional policy aims crucially depends on many other policies, such as policy effectiveness, policies for private development, and policies for innovation. The outcomes of this project will be of relevance to researchers and policymakers from a wide range of disciplines and who are interested in seeing whether and how political decentralisation could act as an instrument for lower regional poverty levels.

“I am very excited to be a recipient of the prestigious MeRSA grant. I am very interested in empirically examine political decentralisation outcomes. This award will help me to examine whether and how the regional government of a European country has the capacity to reduce regional poverty and social exclusion. I trust that this grant will be a stimulus and encouraging signal for the advancement of my research”.

Elisa Giuliani

Rethinking regional development agendas: Human rights and economic growth into perspective

Read the article here – Regional development facing global sustainability challenges

Business-related human rights (BHR) infringements are site-specific violations of universal human rights caused by companies as they pursue their economic goals. They include cases of child labor exploitation and modern slavery in global value chains; of damages to human health and right to life following manufacturing industry’s toxic emissions; violation of indigenous communities’ right to land or water in connection with extractive industry operations, among others. Because aggregate data about BHR infringements are alarming, international organizations like the United Nations and the OECD have taken steps to make companies accountable for their negative impacts on human rights. Yet, considerations about BHR infringements seldom enter into regional economic growth agendas and policies, which are still largely influenced by the contentious idea that economic growth will eventually improve human rights. Current policies are thus largely unprepared to deal with the human suffering caused by companies as they allegedly contribute to growth and do not contemplate the prevention of, and remedy for, BHR infringements. In this project we seek to change this conversation and spark new policy thinking around these topical issues.

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Grants

This grant aims to reward excellence and support outstanding individual researchers on a topic related to regional studies and regional science. It is intended primarily to provide opportunities for scholars who have already published in the field of regional studies and/or regional science and who are currently individual members of the RSA. The value of the award is up to £5,000 (c. $6,600; c. €5,900). The award has a maximum time span of 18 months and reporting conditions apply. The full Terms and Conditions governing the grant are available in the MeRSA Handbook.

Application Deadline (Expression of Interest): 10th May 2023

The MeRSA Grant operates a two stage application and assessment process. In the first round, applicants are asked to submit an expression of interest. The Expression of Interest should submitted via the form – please click on the button below to apply. Shortlisted applicants from this first round will then be asked to submit a full proposal as part of the final selection round. The Expression of Interest should include the following (see details in the handbook):

Applicant information details
Title of the research project
Timings of the research
Summary including details of research and the advances it is hoped that it will make (Max 500 words)
Brief overview of costs and budget
1-3 page CV

Apply for MeRSA grant scheme

If you have any questions or need any help with the submission form, please send us an email to mersa@regionalstudies.org

To see about our grant holder research projects and to watch their videos explaining their research, please click on the Previous and Current Grant Holders grant holder names on the lower left of this page.

For information about a current MeRSA research project by Simón Sánchez-Moral, please visit his project page Disentangling COVID-19 as a driving force of path development processes in Spain

In the video below, Sabine Dörry, RSA Ambassador to Luxembourg and previous MeRSA grant holder shares her top tips for writing grant applications.

In the video below, Xabier Gainza, one of our 2017 MeRSA Grant Holders gives his tips for grant applications:

Andrea Morrison, a MeRSA Grant holder, shares his tips for a successful grant application in the recording below: