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The European Union Regional Social Progress Index aims to measure social progress on 50 indicators across the 272 regions of the EU member states as a complement to traditional measures of economic progress. It is a collaborative project carried out by the Social Progress Imperative, Orkestra (a research institute on competitiveness in the Basque region) and the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy of the European Commission.
CIVITAS has released new guidance on public procurement that provides local and regional policymakers and transport practitioners with policy reflections and practical insight from European procurement experts.
“Technology and the Future of Cities” is a report created by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) recommending ways to make the most of technology and innovation opportunities for cities. The report lays out why now is a good time to promote technologies for cities:
A new report from the Martin Prosperity Institute used detailed data from Thomson Reuters to chart the world’s leading centers for venture capital investment. These data provide granular information on venture capital investment globally as well as the geographic location of venture investments. Worldwide venture capital investment amounted to $42 billion dollars in 2012 and is spread across more than 150 cities and metro regions.
A report issued by the World Economic Forum presents 10 of the best examples from around the world of how cities are creating innovative solutions to a variety of problems. Many of these solutions are scalable, replicable and can be adapted to a variety of specific urban environments. Some are possible only due to new technologies while others apply technology to ideas that are as old as the city itself.
The debt crisis in Greece and the adjustment of goverment spending have led to unexpected deep recession with GDP and employment fall by 15-20% with respect to 2010 levels. Against this background (and the 3rd MOU of 80 billion Euro loan), the report “Turning Northern Greece into an Industrial Champion” by Ansgar Belke, Nicos Christodoulakis, and Daniel Gros,
“Innovation in European Cities” report, published by LSE Cities, sets out the context for Bloomberg Philanthropies’ European Mayors Challenge. It gives an overview of the key themes facing European cities today and provides an independent analysis of the 155 submissions to the award and a detailed review of the five winning proposals.