West Midlands: Fit for the Future? is a book written by ten different authors, each giving their personal view on how the West Midlands can best place itself in readiness for the economic recovery.
The book's focus is the future prosperity of the West Midlands, rather than the effects of the recession. The book explores the West Midlands' ability to maximise its potential as it moves out of the downturn.
Our aim with the book is to stimulate debate and influence policy on the future growth of the West Midlands.
New chapter on green infrastructure
Bill Heslegrave, Regional Director of the Forestry Commission, kindly submitted an eleventh chapter on green infrastructure (pdf, 929kb) to inform the debate on the environment's role in the economic recovery of the West Midlands.
Launch event
Richard Hyde, Chair of the Observatory, launched the book at St. Martin's Church in Birmingham, 21 July 2009.
Launch event photos on flickr
Authors
Foreword
Ian Austin MP (Regional Minister for the West Midlands)
The lessons of a recession: a historical perspective
Dr Chris Upton (Newman University College)
Stick to the knitting: seven lessons to learn in order to move forward
Norman Gascoigne (Regional Finance Forum)
West Midlands: footprint of the UK's second metropolis or lagging peripheral region?
Prof. Brendan Nevin (Nevin-Leather Associates) and Prof. Alan Harding (Institute for Political and Economic Governance, University of Manchester)
How to make our economy grow
Rob Killick and Saleha Ali (cScape)
Skills – how well are we placed for tomorrow?
Mike Beasley (Regional Skills Partnership)
Industrial activism – creating the workforce for the future
Tim Page and Alice Hood (TUC)
Innovation in a recession
Patrick Harris and Cliff Dennett (thoughtengine)
Towards a knowledge-intensive, green manufacturing future
Prof. David Bailey (Coventry University Business School) and Lisa De Propris (Birmingham Business School)
Sustainability and recovery: digging the West Midlands out of recession
Roger Levett (Levett-Therivel sustainability consultants)
Local solutions, regional leadership
Cllr Ken Taylor (Coventry City Council)
Green infrastructure
Bill Heslegrave (Forestry Commission)