RSAI has the great pleasure to announce that the jury consisting of Janice Madden, Carlos Azzoni and Erik Verhoef chose the article "Borrowing size in networks of cities: City size, network connectivity and metropolitan functions in Europe" by Evert J. Meijers, Martijn J. Burger and Marloes M. Hoogerbrugge,  published in Volume 95, Issue 1, Marh 2016, Pages: 181-198 as the winner of the Martin Beckmann Prize as the best paper published in Papers in Regional Science in 2016.

Motivation:

Through an elegant scientific approach, the paper interprets the contrast that exists between the current dynamics in the Western European urban system and the bourgeoning literature stressing the importance of agglomeration for economic growth. 

The papers argues that rise of ‘city network economies’ leads to processes of borrowed size as well as the rise of agglomeration shadows in networks of cities, and finds that network connectivity positively enhances the presence of metropolitan functions, even if local size remains the most significant determinant for most types of functions. 

Based on the originality of the interest in the topic, and the important results achieved, the jury concluded that the paper was the best published one in 2016.

Many congratulations to Evert J. Meijers, Martijn J. Burger and Marloes M. Hoogerbrugge!