This is an excellent book built around an analysis of uniquely detailed datasets and providing very clear empirical insights to a range of important analytical questions in urban economics. The relevance of the book goes well beyond Europe to the wider international arena and exposition is so clear that the book serves a dual purpose - it can be used both to throw light on the empirics of key issues while at the same time it can also serve as a teaching book. Highly recommended.' - Philip McCann, University of Groningen, the Netherlands'Cities are back and so is urban economics. This book documents and explains the resurgence of cities in general and Dutch cities in particular: this is refreshing given the almost total concentration of recent analysis on the US and to a lesser extent the UK. Not only is there a clear account of what agglomeration economies mean and how they reveal themselves in Dutch cities, particularly Amsterdam, but there is a proper emphasis on the consumption aspects of cities. People like them, they like living in them and they benefit from that. It is not all about cities making workers more productive. Another excellent feature of this book is that it gives proper emphasis to land markets and how the good things cities generate get reflected in the price of land and housing. Nor is it all about abstract models and the private sector - there is proper emphasis on the importance of good urban governance and how it can be effectively paid for. The book is accessible and illustrated with great diagrams and maps. It is a good read for all interested in modern urban development.' - Paul C. Cheshire, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK 'Cities and the Urban Premium advances our understanding of urban phenomena through the detailed quantitative description of the characteristics and evolution of the urban system in the Netherlands. Its scope and use of the latest theories and ideas in urban economics, effectively translated to the practical concerns of policy makers in the specific context of the Netherlands, make it a unique book. One that should be an invaluable companion of everyone involved in urban policy.' - Esteban Rossi-Hansberg, Princeton University, US After a long period of suburbanization, cities have been in vogue again since the 1980s. But why are people prepared to spend far more money on a small house in the city centre than on a large house in the countryside - and why doesn't this apply to all cities? The authors of this book argue that the appeal of the city in the 21st century is not only determined by the production side of the economy, but also by the consumption side: its array of shops, cultural activities and, for example, an historic city center. All these factors translate into a huge disparity in land prices as well as different wages for urban and rural citizens. This study maps out these variations, with an economic approach to spatial planning and an emphasis on land rents as a basis for cost-benefit analysis. The use of land prices as a reflection of the appreciation for urban amenities is an ideal measurement tool in the cost-benefit analyses for local investments and spatial planning policies, and sheds new light on the organization of public administration. This accessible book will be of interest to geographers, economists and social scientists, as well as policymakers involved in urban planning, seeking an in-depth understanding of land prices and the increasing importance of cities in the 21st century.

The sectoral composition of economies is fundamental to the understanding of growth, unemployment and the relative performance of nations. Henri de Groot models the relationship between these four factors from a single theoretical perspective in order to determine the foundations of the wealth of nations. Special issues that are addressed include: * the macroeconomic consequences of outsourcing and downsizing * unemployment and catching-up * the relationship between growth and unemployment in a dual labour market * the relative stagnancy of Europe versus the USA in terms of productivity levels and unemployment * transitional dynamics in two-sector endogenous growth models * the causes of deindustrialization * the role of trade unions and efficiency-wage considerations Growth, Unemployment and Deindustrialization will be of paramount interest to scholars of endogenous growth theory, economic growth and unemployment, labour market economics and industrial organization.

It is widely believed that energy efficiency improvement is one of the most interesting options to limit the emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. But, it also has become clear that it is not easy to stimulate companies to adopt measures in this area. Therefore, a main question is: how can governments implement effective policies to stimulate energy-efficiency improvement? The Netherlands and some neighbouring countries in Europe have implemented a variety of policy instruments since 1990. These include investment subsidies, voluntary agreements on energy-efficiency, direct regulation and taxes. How effective are these measures? This book presents improved theoretical insight in the investment behaviour of firms, and moreover it provides a wealth of empirical results on the effectiveness of policy instruments.

Knowledge has in recent years become a key driver for growth of regions and nations. This volume empirically investigates the emergence of the knowledge economy in the late 20th century from a regional point of view. It first deals with the theoretical background for understanding the knowledge economy, with knowledge spillovers and development externalities. It then examines aspects of the relationship between knowledge inputs and innovative outputs in the information, computer and telecommunications sector (ICT) of the economy at the regional level. Case studies focusing on a wide variety of sectors, countries and regions finally illustrate important regional innovation issues.

In a shrinking and increasingly globalised world, it is vital for any entrepreneur to carefully select the location at which production or other economic activities will occur. This book provides a theoretical and empirical analysis of entrepreneurial behaviour in a spatial context, and links it to important new fields in economics such as endogenous growth theory, the new economic geography and evolutionary theory. Although most of the literature to date has failed to study the geographic element of entrepreneurship, this book redresses the balance by examining the spatial variation in entrepreneurial activity and the implications of this for regional policy. The authors provide an in-depth analysis of the role of the entrepreneur in fostering economic development, document the most important recent theoretical and empirical developments, and explain the reasons why some regions grow whereas others stagnate. They also present a number of empirical analyses including case studies from the manufacturing and ICT sectors, as well as an examination of the role of university-based knowledge transfer and entrepreneurial behaviour. Throughout the book, the role of knowledge, knowledge transmission and knowledge spillovers are considered as they relate to entrepreneurial activity and location decisions. This book presents many important new findings on the relationship between entrepreneurship, agglomeration and economic growth. It will make a substantial addition to the literature and will be essential reading for regional economists, geographers, business and management analysts, and development practitioners and policymakers.

This innovative book explores the adoption of energy-saving technologies and their impact on energy efficiency improvements. It contains a mix of theoretical and empirical contributions, and combines and compares economic and physical indicators to monitor and analyze trends in energy efficiency. The authors pay considerable attention to empirical research on the determinants of energy-saving investment including uncertainty, energy-price volatility and subsidies. They also discuss the role of energy modeling in policy design and the potential effect of energy policies on technology diffusion in energy-extensive sectors. Written from a multi-disciplinary perspective, this book will appeal to academics and graduates in the areas of energy-saving technologies, energy economics and natural resource economics as well as policy makers - particularly those in energy policy. Contributors: K. Blok, H.L.F. de Groot, R.J.G.M. Florax, M. Harmelink, G.W. Hunter, S. Joosen, M.J. Koetse, P. Mulder, M.K. Patel, A. Ramirez, W.J.H. van Groenendaal, D.P. van Soest, H.R.J. Vollebergh

Knowledge has in recent years become a key driver for growth of regions and nations. This volume empirically investigates the emergence of the knowledge economy in the late 20th century from a regional point of view. It first deals with the theoretical background for understanding the knowledge economy, with knowledge spillovers and development externalities. It then examines aspects of the relationship between knowledge inputs and innovative outputs in the information, computer and telecommunications sector (ICT) of the economy at the regional level. Case studies focusing on a wide variety of sectors, countries and regions finally illustrate important regional innovation issues.