Guest editors

Makhabbat Ramazanova - University Portucalense, Portugal, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Andrey Shenin - Narxoz University (Almaty, Kazakhstan), This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Farhod Ahrorov - Samarkand branch of Tashkent state university of economics, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Central Asia, with its strategic geographical location, rich historical past and economic growth, has consistently attracted the interest of the international academic community. In order to ensure sustainable, inclusive and resilient development of the region, it is first and foremost necessary to explore the issues, opportunities and challenges of regional development in Central Asia, necessary for effective policymaking, international cooperation and improving the well-being of people in the region. There are many emerging issues in this context, such as sustainability and stability, institutions and development, legal frameworks for sustainable development, economic geography, tourism for regional development, regional policy analysis, political economy, spatial economics and planning, environmental and ecological analysis, and transport networks among others. Recognising the need for high-quality research within a specific timeframe required to sustain the progress of human society, this special issue aims to provide a platform consistent with the overarching topic of the journal, fostering discussion and presenting cutting-edge research on the various challenges and opportunities of regional development in Central Asia.

Keywords

Central Asia, regional development, sustainability, economic growth.

Manuscript submission information:

All submissions must be original and may not be under review elsewhere. All manuscripts will be submitted via the Regional Science Policy & Practice online submission system (https://www.editorialmanager.com/rspp/). Authors should indicate in the cover letter that the paper is submitted for consideration for publication in this special issue “Regional Development in Central Asia: situation and challenges”, otherwise, your submission will be handled as a regular manuscript.

• Submissions open until December 31, 2024.

Note: 

As an open access journal with no subscription charges, a fee (Article Publishing Charge, APC) is payable by the author or research funder to cover the costs associated with publication. This ensures your article will be immediately and permanently free to access by everyone. The Article Publishing Charge for this journal is EUR 1596, excluding taxes.

The RSPP editorial team are pleased to cover APCs for a selected number of accepted articles that are unable to secure sufficient funding. Authors can indicate whether they wish to be considered for this waiver at the beginning of the submission process or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Author Guidelines:

All submitted papers should address significant issues pertinent to the theme of this issue and fall within the scope of Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP). Criteria for acceptance include originality, contribution and scientific merit. All manuscripts must be written in English with high scientific writing standards. Acceptance for publication will be based on referees’ and editors’ recommendations, following a detailed peer review process.

Why publish in this Special Issue?

• Special Issue articles are published together on ScienceDirect, making it incredibly easy for other researchers to discover your work.
• Special content articles are downloaded on ScienceDirect twice as often within the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• Special content articles attract 20% more citations in the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.

Guest editors

Pilar Tejada - University of Seville, Seville (Spain); This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Reyes González-Relaño - University of Seville, Seville (Spain); This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

This special issue provides an opportunity to explore the sustainable tourism from a multidisciplinary approach (economics, geography, psychology, sociology). Sustainability continues to be one of the main challenges facing tourism industry today, especially considering that a gap between theoretical principles sustainability and its practical applications.

- Sustainable tourism development models. 

- Typologies and experiences of sustainable tourism.

- Instruments and relationships in sustainable tourism development.

- Sustainability and climate change.

- Innovation for tourism sustainability

- Territorial aspects of tourism from a sustainability perspective.

- Overtourism

Keywords

Tourism, sustainable, models, applications, climate change, innovation, green transition.

Manuscript submission information:

All submissions must be original and may not be under review elsewhere. All manuscripts will be submitted via the Regional Science Policy & Practice online submission system (https://www.editorialmanager.com/rspp/). Authors should indicate in the cover letter that the paper is submitted for consideration for publication in this special issue “Progress and new challenges of sustainable tourism development”, otherwise, your submission will be handled as a regular manuscript.

• Submissions open until January 31, 2025.

Note: 

As an open access journal with no subscription charges, a fee (Article Publishing Charge, APC) is payable by the author or research funder to cover the costs associated with publication. This ensures your article will be immediately and permanently free to access by everyone. The Article Publishing Charge for this journal is EUR 1596, excluding taxes.

The RSPP editorial team are pleased to cover APCs for a selected number of accepted articles that are unable to secure sufficient funding. Authors can indicate whether they wish to be considered for this waiver at the beginning of the submission process or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Author Guidelines:

All submitted papers should address significant issues pertinent to the theme of this issue and fall within the scope of Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP). Criteria for acceptance include originality, contribution and scientific merit. All manuscripts must be written in English with high scientific writing standards. Acceptance for publication will be based on referees’ and editors’ recommendations, following a detailed peer review process.

Why publish in this Special Issue?

• Special Issue articles are published together on ScienceDirect, making it incredibly easy for other researchers to discover your work.
• Special content articles are downloaded on ScienceDirect twice as often within the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• Special content articles attract 20% more citations in the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.

Editor

Ana Viñuela - Universidad de Oviedo, Dpto Economia Aplicada, Oviedo, SPAIN; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Territorial inequalities are barely studied at a local level in Europe in a comprehensive way mainly due to the lack of comparative data or proxies of economic activity. Without local data it is impossible to proof the agglomeration of economic activity (in the cities) and therefore the growing gap between rural and urban areas, between the centre and the periphery of the country or between the core and the fringe of the large metropolitan areas.  This is one of the reason why, when studying the areas that have been left-behind, any research tends to focus on case studies.

In this Special Issue we will try to combine   both qualitative and quantitative research on areas (as opposed to regions) that indeed have been left-behind the paths of economic growth of prosperity. The aim would be trying to answer some of the following questions: What is the meaning of the left-behindness concept? How can we identify the left-behind areas? Where are those areas? What are their characteristics? What quantitative data are available to study left-behindness?  Are there any common past characteristics that might explain their present situation? What can be done at the different levels of governance (European, national and local) to improve their situation? What has been done in different areas of Europe? And what about regional or local stakeholders? Are citizens mobilizing somehow to either protest or react in order to reverse their localities´ situation?  

Keywords

Territorial inequalities at local level, Localities vs regions, economic growth, Left-behind concept, accessibility, depopulation, local- based policies, local discontent, local initiatives.

Manuscript submission information:

All submissions must be original and may not be under review elsewhere. All manuscripts will be submitted via the Regional Science Policy & Practice online submission system (https://www.editorialmanager.com/rspp/). Authors should indicate in the cover letter that the paper is submitted for consideration for publication in this special issue “Left Behind Areas. Past, Present and Future”, otherwise, your submission will be handled as a regular manuscript.

• Submissions open until December 31, 2024.
• Compile a Special Issue with at least seven accepted papers: April 2025.

Note: 

As an open access journal with no subscription charges, a fee (Article Publishing Charge, APC) is payable by the author or research funder to cover the costs associated with publication. This ensures your article will be immediately and permanently free to access by everyone. The Article Publishing Charge for this journal is EUR 1596, excluding taxes.

The RSPP editorial team are pleased to cover APCs for a selected number of accepted articles that are unable to secure sufficient funding. Authors can indicate whether they wish to be considered for this waiver at the beginning of the submission process or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Author Guidelines:

All submitted papers should address significant issues pertinent to the theme of this issue and fall within the scope of Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP). Criteria for acceptance include originality, contribution and scientific merit. All manuscripts must be written in English with high scientific writing standards. Acceptance for publication will be based on referees’ and editors’ recommendations, following a detailed peer review process.

Keywords:
public finance, tax policy, public spending, tax competition, fiscal disparity, fiscal equity, fiscal health, fiscal sustainability, infrastructure funding, green bonds

Why publish in this Special Issue?

• Special Issue articles are published together on ScienceDirect, making it incredibly easy for other researchers to discover your work.
• Special content articles are downloaded on ScienceDirect twice as often within the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• Special content articles attract 20% more citations in the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.

Editor

Samuel Odei Amponsah - Hradec Kralove, Czechia; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sub-Sahara Africa has experienced different challenges in recent periods that interest many areas of Regional Science: such as spatial and social disparities, exploitation of natural resources, urbanization, and migration, just to mention some.

Therefore, this special issue will feature research (with sound methods and replicable evidence) that sheds light on the different challenges that Sub-Sahara Africa will face in the next decades, with a special focus on regional policies which can lead to solving these issues.

The objective of this issue is to provide a better understanding of human interaction within space in Sub-Sahara Africa to address the problems of people and places.

Keywords

Sustainable development, spatial and social disparities migration, urbanization, regional development, Sub-Sahara Africa.

Manuscript submission information:

All submissions must be original and may not be under review elsewhere. All manuscripts will be submitted via the Regional Science Policy & Practice online submission system (https://www.editorialmanager.com/rspp/). Authors should indicate in the cover letter that the paper is submitted for consideration for publication in this special issue “Sustainable Regional Development in Sub-Saharan Africa”, otherwise, your submission will be handled as a regular manuscript.

• Submissions open until July 15, 2025.

Note: 

As an open access journal with no subscription charges, a fee (Article Publishing Charge, APC) is payable by the author or research funder to cover the costs associated with publication. This ensures your article will be immediately and permanently free to access by everyone. The Article Publishing Charge for this journal is EUR 1596, excluding taxes.

The RSPP editorial team are pleased to cover APCs for a selected number of accepted articles that are unable to secure sufficient funding. Authors can indicate whether they wish to be considered for this waiver at the beginning of the submission process or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Author Guidelines:

All submitted papers should address significant issues pertinent to the theme of this issue and fall within the scope of Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP). Criteria for acceptance include originality, contribution and scientific merit. All manuscripts must be written in English with high scientific writing standards. Acceptance for publication will be based on referees’ and editors’ recommendations, following a detailed peer review process.

Keywords:
public finance, tax policy, public spending, tax competition, fiscal disparity, fiscal equity, fiscal health, fiscal sustainability, infrastructure funding, green bonds

Why publish in this Special Issue?

• Special Issue articles are published together on ScienceDirect, making it incredibly easy for other researchers to discover your work.
• Special content articles are downloaded on ScienceDirect twice as often within the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• Special content articles attract 20% more citations in the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.

Guest editor

Soomi Lee – Department of Public Administration, University of La Verne (USA); This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP) is pleased to announce a special issue focused on the intersection of public finance and regional science. This issue seeks contributions that bridge academic studies and practical applications to understand the role of public finance in regional development and sustainability.

Regional science and public finance are two fields that, while addressing related issues, often operate in silos. While both fields contribute to our understanding of economic systems, their separation limits an integrated perspective of how public finance shapes regional outcomes and, conversely, how regional characteristics influence the design and impact of fiscal policies.

In this special issue, we aim to break down these silos.

We welcome papers from various disciplines, including public policy, economics, urban planning, geography, public administration, and environmental science. Submissions should employ sound and replicable methods that generate robust evidence. We encourage collaborative contributions between researchers and practitioners to provide actionable recommendations.

We will welcome the following themes, among others:

• Tax policy and spatial development
• Fiscal decentralization and inter- and intra-regional fiscal and socioeconomic disparities
• Intergovernmental transfers and regional economic resilience in Climate-impacted regions
• Financing green transitions in regions
• Fiscal policies and migration, such as workforce mobility and rural depopulation.
• Infrastructure finance and the role of public-private partnerships to finance large-scale projects
• Inter- and intra-comparative regional fiscal policies and best practices in developed and developing countries

We look forward to your contributions that will help shape the future of public finance and regional development policy.

Manuscript submission information:

All submissions must be original and may not be under review elsewhere. All manuscripts will be submitted via the Regional Science Policy & Practice online submission system (https://www.editorialmanager.com/rspp/). Authors should indicate in the cover letter that the paper is submitted for consideration for publication in this special issue “Public Finance in Regional Development and Sustainability”, otherwise, your submission will be handled as a regular manuscript.

• Submissions open until July 31, 2025.
• Compile a Special Issue with at least seven accepted papers: May 2026.

Note: 

As an open access journal with no subscription charges, a fee (Article Publishing Charge, APC) is payable by the author or research funder to cover the costs associated with publication. This ensures your article will be immediately and permanently free to access by everyone. The Article Publishing Charge for this journal is EUR 1596, excluding taxes.

The RSPP editorial team are pleased to cover APCs for a selected number of accepted articles that are unable to secure sufficient funding. Authors can indicate whether they wish to be considered for this waiver at the beginning of the submission process or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Author Guidelines:

All submitted papers should address significant issues pertinent to the theme of this issue and fall within the scope of Regional Science Policy & Practice (RSPP). Criteria for acceptance include originality, contribution and scientific merit. All manuscripts must be written in English with high scientific writing standards. Acceptance for publication will be based on referees’ and editors’ recommendations, following a detailed peer review process.

Keywords:
public finance, tax policy, public spending, tax competition, fiscal disparity, fiscal equity, fiscal health, fiscal sustainability, infrastructure funding, green bonds

Why publish in this Special Issue?

• Special Issue articles are published together on ScienceDirect, making it incredibly easy for other researchers to discover your work.
• Special content articles are downloaded on ScienceDirect twice as often within the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• Special content articles attract 20% more citations in the first 24 months than articles published in regular issues.
• All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.