Why Parts of the Rust Belt Love Donald Trump
National pride, not economic dislocation, fuels the current wave of right-wing populism.
Jim Russell
Jim Russell is a geographer studying the relationship between migration and economic development.
People Are Distressed, Not Communities
By measuring place, the Distressed Communities Index does a poor job of assessing people.
Economic Geography of the Cloud
An abundance of digital data predicts where the jobs will be.
Mapping Yesterday's Economic Geography, Today
The economy we measure isn't the economy we have.
Seattle Is the Next Detroit
Henry Ford and Detroit radically changed the economic geography of the world. Now, Jeff Bezos and Seattle are poised to do the same.
Los Angeles Is What New York Wants to Be When It Grows Up
If New York City is your adolescent self, then Los Angeles is what you aspire to.
Sociolinguistics and the Geography of Innovation
The decline of the Southern drawl maps the diffusion of knowledge production in the United States.
Goldilocks and the Geography of Innovation
A sweet spot in the Technology Readiness Level attracts private industry.
How Defining a Metropolitan Statistical Area Promotes Poverty
A metro only exists for those who can afford to commute.
Higher Education Is Dying
Wage convergence is hitting many industries, including higher education as well as oil and gas.
The Geography of 'Displacement'
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
When Generation Rent Becomes Generation Buy
Regions where Millennials are renting don't look like where they will buy homes.
What the Rust Belt Can Teach Us About White Flight, Gentrification, and Brain Drain
With a focus on why people leave, we ignore at least half of the migration story.
The Geographic Scale of Globalization Isn't Global
Nations—and even cities—don't globalize. Globalization spreads block by block.
Debunking Texas Exceptionalism: De-Regulation Will Not Save Us
Houston has a de facto zoning problem.
The Second Machine Age Is Dying
Get ready for an unprecedented economic boom in the United States.
The Economic Geography of the Second Machine Age
In 2006, the digital economy underwent a dramatic transformation that changed the map of talent migration.
Ezra Klein Is Transforming Education
Journalists have replaced teachers as the curators of expertise.
Why Top Talent Must Flee Silicon Valley
In order for tech workers to cash out on home equity, Proposition 13 forces them to move to another state.
Exploiting Puerto Rico's Fuzzy Sovereignty
With the homeland as neither nation nor state, Puerto Ricans twist in the wind of political whimsy.
Atlanta's Talent Attraction Problem
From 2000–2013, Atlanta has fallen further behind other large metros in growing its population of college-educated young adults.
How Can Rust Belt Cities Attract More Immigrants?
Communities might roll out the red carpet for the foreign-born, but the more welcoming disposition doesn't do the trick.
Economic Growth in an Era of Demographic Decline
A shrinking population isn't the end of economic expansion.
The Political Geography of Market Urbanism
The later the economic boom, the greater the municipal area.
The Talent Migration Paradox
Better to develop people and have them leave than to attract and retain college graduates.
The Geography of Aspiration
Migration analysis places too much emphasis on push factors and not enough on the pull of opportunity.
Social Innovation and Informal Housing Supply
Changing zoning regulations is an inefficient way to address the housing affordability problem.
The Futility of Trying to Attract (and Retain) College Graduates
The young and well educated are moving to the largest cities. They don't care about a lower cost of living or cool amenities.
Are High Housing Costs Forcing Talent to Flee Silicon Valley?
The pull of opportunity, not the push of expensive real estate, drives migration from California.
The Depopulation Bomb
Almost 50 years ago Dr. Paul Ehrlich published a book called The Population Bomb. Today, demographic hysteria concerns too few people.
The New Geography of Jobs: Talent Production Versus Knowledge Production
Pittsburgh is the best place in the United States to flip property. What explains the real estate boom?
The Economic Geography of Tech Talent
The tech talent apple doesn't fall too far from the university tree.
Technological Innovation Begets Migration
In a virtuous circle, migration and innovation make the world go round.
Stanford University Is Dying
You go where you know. You went to the wrong college and spent too much money.
The Third Globalization: Human Capital and Demographic Decline
Half of the world lives in a country where the number of births fails to replace those who die.
Make Knowledge, Not Widgets
Zero manufacturing employment: Coming soon to a regional economy near you.
Boston Versus Silicon Valley: Advantage Beantown
A few decades ago, Silicon Valley beat out Boston for tech dominance. Today, Boston is emerging as the epicenter of a new economic era.
'The Handmaid's Tale' Is Economic Development
In Europe, women are valued for their fertility, not productivity.