A lecturer from Lancaster University Management School has helped deliver an international seminar series run by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Dr Edward McKeever was invited by OECD to use the findings of his long-term research into regional development and rural entrepreneurship to lead one pillar of its international seminar series entitled 'the role of place identity in place transformation', funded by the UKRI, and designed for academics, businesses, government officials and marketing professionals heavily involved in local development across the world.

Participants from the UK, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, United States and Vietnam attended, with the aim of contributing to the creation of a policy framework for a more place-based view of local and regional development across the globe.

Dr McKeever said: “I was delighted to be invited to lead a strand of the recent OECD seminar series which focused on the ability to transform a place.

“My research into the resourcefulness of ‘left behind’ places across the world shaped my contributions, which generated collaborative discussion on how to foster a sense of belonging, and how local leadership, social capital, and the identity and narrative surrounding a place can lead to vital transformation.”

The OECD is an international alliance of 38 countries that works to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. The seminar series was held as part of the broader UKRI-funded project, Transforming Places | OECD. Dr McKeever is now in discussion with OECD to create regional case studies from his research findings to demonstrate various new local development ‘models’ to further this strand of work.

Lancaster University Management School prides itself on producing world-leading research that makes a positive impact on societies around the globe. To find out more about LUMS’ latest thinking on some of the world’s biggest problems, visit www.lancaster.ac.uk/lums/research