Regional economic development and economic geography are compelling
issues for student of political economy, management and public
policy because they frame the question of production and place.
The study of production and place lies at the heart of issues
central to the rise and fall of great powers and great enterprises:
international politics and trade, technology development, and
the organization and management of production. Production and
place are also central to the lives of individuals: They determine
the nature of work, the rise and fall of living standards, and
in large part, local politics. From the level of the nation-state
to the level of the individual, the story of production and place
is the story of quality and quantity of jobs.