ABSTRACT
We now move from theoretical explanations of the process of regional planning to explanations of the substantive nature of regions. How do we explain the prosperity of some regions and the decline of others? What determines the spatial structure of regions, and what are the determinants of sustainable regional development? The determinants of regional development are many and complex and, as noted by Hilhorst (1971) many years ago, their explanation presents a daunting task. The contributions to regional substantive theory, the explanations of the nature and condition of regions, stem from a wide variety of sources – as a glance through the volumes of a journal such as Regional Studies will reveal. ‘Packaging’ the various theories constitutes a major problem. In the 1960s, Friedmann and Alonso published a seminal text on Regional Development and Planning (Friedmann and Alonso 1964), which sought to organise relevant knowledge into three broad areas: spatial organisation, urbanisation and regional growth theories. Another approach is to differentiate between ‘macro’, inter-regional approaches, which focus on inter-relationships between regions as a whole, and ‘micro’, or intra-regional approaches, which focus on the actions of individual agents within a region. There are also supplyside and demand-side approaches, and variations in approach depending on an academic/discipline starting point. Over time, there has been considerable inter-mixing and fusing of explanations.
