Economic Geography: The Basics

Through a concise and accessible overview, Economic Geography: The Basics examines how geographical concepts – place, space, territory, networks, and scale – enable the study of economic phenomena from a spatial perspective.

Economic Geography: The Basics examines how geographical concepts – place, space, territory, networks, and scale – enable the study of economic phenomena from a spatial perspective.

Readers will develop an understanding of the diverse theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches that define ‘Economic Geography’. The six chapters cover the internal complexities and contradictions of the field, its fluid boundaries, and its diverse contexts. Methodologically, the book addresses critical challenges, such as the bias towards national-level analysis that neglects regional and local nuances, and the tendency to oversimplify diverse groups, treating them as uniform entities and ignoring internal complexities. It also underscores the importance of considering the inherent power dynamics between researchers and their ‘subjects’. These critical reflections collectively ensure a more rigorous research framework for explaining how economies function.

Designed for undergraduate and postgraduate students in Geography, Business, Economics, Sociology, and Politics, Economic Geography: The Basics equips students with the spatial analytical tools to explore a wide range of economic activities and their broader societal implications, including but not limited to markets, state interventions, industrialisation processes, the organisation of labour, and the dynamics of social reproduction.

1. Introducing Economic Geography 2. Mapping the market: Geographies of production, exchange, and consumption 3. Beyond the market: Policy, redistribution, and the shifting rules of capitalism 4. Economic Geography for a changing world: Applying a critical lens to contemporary issues 5. Research in action: Reflexivity, relevance, and impact 6. Moving beyond ‘the basics’: Critical and consequential Economic Geography

"This is a very well researched book for aspiring economic geographers. It has indeed delivered on its promise to be reflexive and inclusive in our current understanding of the subject matter and the practice of future economic-geographical research. The book offers much more than basic concepts in the field, but most importantly also critical insights into some of the most pressing challenges in the global economy. A must read for all students and educators in the field."
Professor Henry Wai-chung Yeung, Choh-Ming Li Professor of Geography and Resource Management, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

"Concise, focused, impressively up-to-date, and ambitious take on the basics of contemporary economic geography, its roots, and possible futures. Clear exposition of selected theories, methods, and contemporary issues. With good attention to the role of capital and land, as well as financial geographies offering insights into both. A critical and constructive voice for more consequential economic geography."
Professor Dariusz Wójcik, Provost’s Chair Professor of Financial Geography, National University of Singapore

"Conceptually ambitious, yet jargon free, this book shows how contemporary economic geographies emerge. It brings the core concepts of space, place, scale, territory, and networks to life through empirical examples from around the world, demonstrating the power of economic geography to explain phenomena ranging from trade wars and state-owned enterprises to financialization and degrowth."
Professor Heidi Østbø Haugen, Professor of Human Geography, Univ