ESPPRIT Activities
Next event: Special Session on "Contestation as a lens in regional sustainability transitions" at the RSA Annual Conference | 15-18 June 2026 | Gothenburg
Event 1: Thematic Workshop 1 | Network Kickoff | 28 May 2024 | 9am-11am BST | online, Zoom
Theme of the event: Eco-Social Policy and Practice for Innovation and Transformation (ESPPRIT)
The workshop focused on the status quo of Regional Studies in systematically addressing regional transformations, different disciplinary approaches to the systematic reorganisation of society and the strengths and limitations of strategies promoting sustainable wellbeing.
Convenors:
- Astrid Krisch, University of Oxford, UK
- Lucas Barning, TU Wien, Austria
- Sarah Ware, WU Wien, Austria
- Alexander Hamedinger, TU Wien, Austria
Activities:
- Introduction by the network’s organisers
- Keynotes by Kevin Morgan, Cardiff University, UK and Tuuli Hirvilammi, Tampere University, UK followed by Q&A
- Opportunities to engage: Contribute research interests and expectations in participating in the network.
The event report is available on the ESPPRIT Resources page.
Theme of the event: Promoting justice for eco-social transformations in urban and regional development: perspectives from theory and practice
In this Session we will engage with the overlooked adverse implications, consequences, and outcomes of regional transformations regarding justice and societal wellbeing to better understand regional economic disparities, and alternative approaches to address the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of wellbeing.
Session Organisers:
Lucas Barning, University of Vienna, Austria
Astrid Krisch, University of Oxford, UK
Sarah Ware, WU Vienna, Austria
Event 3: Thematic Workshop 2 | 18-19 June 2025 | Oxford, UK
Theme of the event: The geography of alternative economic development policy for eco-social transformations
The workshop focused on the role of place and space in economic development policy, asking how we can rethink economic development policy to shape an eco-social transformation and how economic, environmental, and social sustainability can be balanced within alternative economic development approaches.
Activities:
- Keynotes, moderated panel and lightning rounds of current research
- Catered lunch and event dinner and local field trip with networking
- Opportunities to engage: presentations of current research activities, session proposals for moderated discussion, informal networking, childcare services provided (tbc)
Public Keynote Presentations | ESPPRIT Workshop, 18–19 June 2025
The RSA Research Network ESPPRIT (Eco-Social Policy and Practice for Innovation and Transformation) was delighted to host two public keynote presentations as part of its upcoming workshop in Oxford on 18–19 June 2025.
Wednesday 18 June, 2:00–3:00 PM (BST)
Professor Julie Froud (University of Manchester)
Rethinking Infrastructure for People and Places: The Tricky Case of Water in England and Wales
Thursday 19 June, 9:30–10:30 AM (BST)
Professor John Tomaney (University College London)
Global Universities and Left-Behind Places: UCL’s Emerging Regional Communities Agenda
The event report is available on the ESPPRIT Resources page.
Event 4: Thematic Workshop 3 | October 2025 | Vienna, AT
Theme of the event: Learning from social innovation and social policy for eco-social transformation
The workshop will discuss policy instruments and policy mixes that can shape an eco-social transformation while ensuring equity and justice. We will engage in debates about how existing institutions can be reformed or new ones created to enable sustainable and equitable transformations across multiple levels and scales.
Activities:
- Keynotes and plenary discussions with local initiatives, advocacy groups and researchers
- Catered lunch and dinner and local field trip with informal networking
- Opportunities to engage: research pitches, session proposals for moderated discussion, informal networking, childcare services provided (tbc)
Event 5: Special Session on "Contestation as a lens in regional sustainability transitions" at the RSA Annual Conference | 15-18 June 2026 | Gothenburg
Event 6: Author’s Workshop | September 2026 | Vienna, AT
Theme of the event: Research, policy, and practice for regional futures: Shaping and designing an eco-social transformation
The ESPPRIT Research Network will welcome a group of researchers involved in the network to take part in an author’s workshop at the Technical University of Vienna on Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th September. Building off previous workshop outputs, we will share and provide feedback on current research around the topic “Spaces of Contestation: Transgressing Policies and Practices of Eco-Social Transformation” toward a collective writing project to further advance our understanding of contestation with respect to regional studies and social ecological transformation."
