From CSIL, we are pleased to share information about our upcoming Workshop on Counterfactual Impact Evaluation (CIE), which will take place in Milan on 11–13 May 2026.
The workshop focuses specifically on the application of counterfactual methods to regional and cohesion policy evaluation, addressing questions that could be very relevant for RSA members:
- How can we rigorously assess the impact of regional development programmes?
- How do we design credible evaluation strategies when working with place-based interventions?
- How can evaluation results meaningfully inform Cohesion Policy decision-making?
Over three days, participants will work through:
- Matching, Difference-in-Differences, Regression Discontinuity, and Synthetic Control methods
- Applications to policies targeting regions, firms, and local labour markets
- Practical challenges in evaluating Structural Funds and innovation programmes
- Discussion on how evaluation findings feed into programming and policy reform
The programme combines methodological rigour with applied case work and concludes with a high-level roundtable involving representatives from European institutions.
Given the strong thematic alignment with cohesion policy and regional development research, we believe the workshop may be of interest to RSA members working on EU Cohesion Policy, Regional growth and convergence, Innovation and Smart Specialisation, Evaluation of Structural Funds.
Full programme and registration details are available here:
https://www.csilmilano.com/cie-workshop/