Category: Regional Development

Transforming Limerick

Two initiatives that would transform Limerick and its region

In the knowledge economy strong vibrant cities of scale with coherent vision and governance are the key economic drivers of whole regions.

Limerick and its region have great potential but in … Continue reading

Newry-Dundalk: the cross-border bipolar city

The British and Irish Governments have launched an important study designed to stimulate the creation of an ‘all-island economy’. A variety of North/South collaborative initiatives are proposed. The study is important in its own right. But it is also a … Continue reading

Arresting the Decline of Irish Cities

After returning from my first visit to Finland my wife thought it was most disloyal to declare I wanted to become a Finn. Why?  Because it appeared to me that the Finns I met had come close to finding the … Continue reading

Waterford University

University vital for Southeast

The 900 job losses announced in a single week by four different multinationals highlight the significant change taking place in the Irish economy.  High costs and the maze of employment regulation in Ireland are stimulating multinationals … Continue reading

Decentralisation

‘Decentralisation’ is a term that voters in most parts of the world find so desirable that it ranks with ‘motherhood and apple pie’: almost everyone is for it.  But here in Ireland, where Dublin has so outpaced the growth of … Continue reading

Atlantic Technopolis

Regional development has not worked in Ireland.  A continuous drift of people to Dublin has both weakened the regions and congested the capital. This imbalance has triggered the preparation of The National Spatial Strategy and much effort and consultation has … Continue reading