Conclusion: the concept of proximity in regional science - a synthesis and future research avenues

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to highlight the main messages the reader can grasp by reading the handbook, and what remains to be interpreted in this fascinating concept. This aim is achieved through a diachronic review of the nexus between space and proximity developed in the different regional growth theories, a nexus that evolves according to the economic advantages that proximity is called to explain. The chapter then underlines the fascinating role played by proximities in linking long distance networks and local space, that emerges from reading the handbook, and concludes with a personal view on what remains to be studied.