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Looking back, to look forwards

Nov 2017 | Personal, Thinkpiece

I have a confession to make. It was not until 2014, just before my second year at BUILD (Bilbao Urban Innovation and Leadership Dialogues), that I fully understood the role of its initiator, the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMFUS). I had been describing...

Maintaining bridges; keeping cities connected beyond the UK

Apr 2017 | Article

I’ve long held that peer-to-peer learning can be more powerful than formal training and with deepening devolution, the Good City Economy UK road trip is a great idea. The next logical step is international ‘study’, given that cities collaborate with greater...

Empowering communities to prosper

Mar 2015 | CDF

Last week, the New Weather Institute – a co-operative think tank – launched its book ‘People Powered Prosperity’. It sets out a narrative for very local economics, based on local financial and enterprise institutions. It is an important intervention that kickstarts a...

Why it’s vital to keep funding small community groups

Oct 2014 | Guest blog

The coalition government has slashed funding for small community groups, which all too often are seen as the “nice to have” part of our society. They are praised and thanked, but their true social and economic contribution is overlooked. Yet they are the glue holding...