Skills and educational development for inclusive and sustainable growth are becoming significant drivers in OECD countries.

This book examines regional innovation in central and southern Denmark, looking at its role in the economy, its governance and policy context and regional strategies for innovation driven growth.

The Regional Growth Core Schönefelder Kreuz and the Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau in partnership with the OECD Local Economic and Employment Development Programme (LEED) are working on defining and collecting measurable indicators at the regional/ local level that can inform over time of transition to low-carbon economic and industrial activities.

Russia: Innovation and Modernising the Rural Economy

This project aims to support the Slovak Republic as it seeks to create a clear rationale for the Regional Development Agencies Integrated Network which currently comprises 38 agencies.

This new publication looks at how renewable energy can bring the greatest benefits to host regions.

Vibrant and dynamic urban centers are among the main drivers of national growth and employment, but OECD’s new report Promoting Growth in All Regions highlights that even less wealthy regions have the potential to bolster stronger, greener, and more inclusive economies.

The conference discussed the results of the project as well as policy recommendations on training and skills development for the creation of an innovative and competitive SME sector in OECD countries.

This paper looks at a study carried out among 80 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in two Canadian cities, Montréal and Winnipeg, based on a survey and case studies, which show the importance of innovation among Canadian SMEs. These innovations in turn create new demands for skill development, both through formal training and in informal activities.

The OECD LEED Delivering Local Development work stream examines the local and regional framework conditions and instruments for intervention to achieve successful local economic development in participating countries and localities. It covers strategic themes encompassing finance and investment, building the knowledge base, delivery vehicles and economic strategies (including the local development impacts from global events).

Brazil’s economic growth has been supported in recent years by important government investment and social programmes that mobilise resources across the country. These programmes could help Brazil to meet its goals of sustaining economic growth and fostering social development, while reducing regional disparities.

This paper discusses the results of the 2011-2012 OECD LEED study of measuring green growth in the Benelux countries (Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg). The study paid particular attention to the challenges of measuring the transition to a low-carbon economy in cross-border areas as they have additional levels of complexity when it comes to measuring and monitoring their low-carbon transition.

Mexico regularly faces a wide range of natural hazards, including earthquakes, tropical storms and floods. Over the years, the National Civil Protection System has improved its institutional and operational preparedness to manage these disruptive events. But more can be done to avoid future losses and at the same time support sustainable economic development.

The creation of innovative new firms and the development of SME innovation are strongly influenced by the extent to which localities offer environments that favour the transfer of knowledge to local business and provide the other resources required for innovative firm development, including skills, finance, advice, and supply chain partners.

Water shortages and floods illustrate the risks posed by too little, or too much, water. By 2050 more than 40% of the world’s population will live under severe water stress and nearly 20% could be exposed to floods.

Many areas like Manisa suffer from a local lack of sophisticated demand in terms of expressed SME requirements. This leaves considerable scope for demand and supply side initiatives set within KOSGEB’s framework that will assist in shaping intervention and promoting a coherent approach to SME development.

Ireland’s economy is now showing encouraging signs of recovery from the financial crisis, but more must be done to reinvigorate growth and create the jobs that will get the country back to full health, according to the OECD.

Newsletter on regional development for autumn 2013.

This report provides a framework to understand the changing relationships between urban and rural areas. Specifically, it documents the characteristics of these partnerships and the factors that can hinder as well as enable rural-urban co-operation.

The 9th OECD Rural Development Policy Conference in Bologna, on 23-25 October 2013, will launch the publication "Rural-Urban partnerships: an integrated approach to economic development".

This report examines cross-border collaboration on innovation, building on case studies of cross-border areas that include the following countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Estonia, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom and Ireland.

The economic crisis has hit certain regions and cities harder than others in the OECD area, calling for better regional policies across levels of governments to foster an inclusive and sustainable recovery, according to two new OECD reports.

The last decade has seen considerable policy attention to the social economy and its contribution to employment, in particular as regards the inclusion and empowerment of vulnerable workers and the provision of appropriate working conditions.

LEED and Cedefop organise the second edition of the Green Skills Forum which will bring together experts in innovation, employability and skills development and lessons from work conducted by the OECD, Cedefop, and other organisations on the implications of the green economy for skills development and training policies.

The Netherlands is a global pioneer in water management with a long history of containing flood risks and reclaiming land from the sea. Yet it will need to adapt its water governance policies to meet the looming challenges of shifting demographics, regional development and climate change, according to an OECD report.

In partnership with the Swedish Public Employment Service, Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR), Swedish Ministry of Employment and the World Association of Public Employment Services (WAPES), LEED held the 10th Annual Meeting of the Forum on Partnerships and Local Development in Stockholm 23 April – 25 April, on the theme of ‘job creation just ahead: building adaptable labour markets’.

This is the spring 2014 edition of the regional development policy newsletter.

Air pollution is costing advanced economies plus China and India an estimated USD 3.5 trillion a year in premature deaths and ill health and the costs will rise without government action to limit vehicle emissions, a new OECD report says.

The Japan-OECD Policy Forum on Urban Development and Green Growth will address cities’ unique role in creating synergies between environmental and economic objectives to advance green growth. Asian cities in particular are at the centre of this challenge. This event is organised as a commemorative event for the 50th Anniversary of Japan's Accession to the OECD.

An overview of vents and reports on Regional Development Policy for Autumn 2014.

This publication highlights new evidence on policies to support job creation, bringing together the latest research on labour market, entrepreneurship and local economic development policy to help governments support job creation in the recovery.

The OECD LEED Programme has a quaterly newsletter to diffuse the current news on employment and local development

Improving Myanmar's agricultural sector by building up food processing activities and related services could help the transformation of the country's economy, to a more modern one able to produce higher-value goods for export, according to a new OECD report.

In the face of shifting global trade patterns, international freight transport volumes will grow more than fourfold (factor 4.3) by 2050. Average transport distance across all modes will increase 12%, according to the latest ITF Transport Outlook.

The Trentino co-operative model has gained wide acclaim for its positive economic and social impact upon the territory. Developing a strong understanding of why the model has been so effective is important in identifying those factors which other localities could utilise as potential criticalities.

Tunisia has made great strides since 2011 towards greater inclusivity and fairness in its political system, based on the rule of law, transparency and good governance.

New global trend such as jobless growth, a rising youth population and resource scarcity threaten to undo much of the progress of recent decades in securing people’s ability to make a living, according to a new report by the OECD Development Centre launched in Paris today at the OECD Global Forum on Development.

The project provided recommendations to the city of Medellin and Antioquia to support the development of the local economy and includes a focus on how the innovative environment can be strengthened to support inclusion, entrepreneurship, SME, and local developmentto and how to better coordinate and integrate its policies with the national level.

This report explores this question on the basis of detailed mobility data including origin, destination and timing of all trips for a mid-sized European city. ITF developed a model to test various alternative transport system configurations that would provide the same level of mobility (locations and timing) as today.

Newsletter for OECD Regional Development Policy giving an overview of projects from January-June 2015.

Local policymakers have a critical role to play in developing more resilient and inclusive economies. This event will explore topics ranging from empowering communities through local leadership to new approaches to local economic growth and catalysing growth through people by better harnessing skills and increasing productivity.

The work will seek to identify good practices for employer engagement in the areas of both developing and utilising skills, including setting up innovative workplace learning methods, designing effective employer partnerships with the employment and training system as well as financing mechanisms for employer-led training, including how best to reach SMEs.

The recent droughts in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo states have exposed the need to shift from crisis management to effective risk governance of the country’s water resources, according to a new OECD report.

Improvements in health, access to basic services and housing have contributed most to raising standards of living of Mexicans over the past 15 years but further advances are needed to bring well-being indicators closer to the average of OECD countries, according to a new report.

The OECD and the Italian government are stepping up cooperation to ensure effective implementation of local development strategies to boost jobs, encourage entrepreneurship and increase social inclusion. An agreement, to be signed in Rome on 1 December 2015, will renew the mandate of the OECD Trento Centre for Local Development and establish a satellite office in Venice.

The tourism industry in OECD countries continues to grow strongly despite economic weakness in advanced economies, and outperformed tourism globally in 2014. However, active, innovative and integrated policies are needed to ensure that tourism remains a competitive and sustainable sector, says OECD.

Mayors from cities across the United States, Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America gathered in New York to launch a global campaign to address rising inequalities and foster inclusive growth in their cities, in their countries and worldwide.

The OECD will convene the 2016 edition of its Global Forum on Development on the theme of "From Commitment to Actual Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Policies, data and financing", on 31 March 2016 in Paris.

The new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) include a significant number of interconnected objectives related to agriculture and food.

This year the Forum will focus on creativity, jobs and local development. We will examine how localities can support culture and creative industries as a source of knowledge and job creation and how the creative industry can act as a powerful driving force areas such as tourism, urban regeneration, and social inclusion.