Economic Geography: Theory and Applications to Urban Planning

3.0 credits · Undergraduate

This course provides an introduction to economic geography—a branch of human geography concerned with economic development and explicitly spatial aspects of economic activity. It does this by integrating theoretical and empirical analysis in a manner that is directly relevant to the practice of city and regional planning. Among other things, it covers location theory, the spatial equilibrium concept, human and social capital, interregional migration, socioeconomic inequality, and various models of urban and regional development. Technical material is supported by ancillary readings focused on current events, meaning that the course’s theoretical dimensions are tied directly to problems faced by society—and practitioners of planning and policy. The course emphasizes the complementarity of positive analysis and normative thinking toward the objective of delivering evidence-based plans and policies.