The Institute for Economic and Cultural Geography (Leibniz University of Hannover, LUH) analyses spatial processes of economic restructuring in countries at different stages of development. Core research areas are industrialised, newly industrialising and developing countries in Europe, North America, Southeast and East Asia. Our research projects are usually sponsored by public research agencies, e.g. the German Research Association (DFG) or the Volkswagen-Foundation.

In the last decade, the Institute has been involved in innovation surveys, covering manufacturing firms, knowledge-intensive business services and research institutions in eleven regions across Europe (European Regional Innovation Survey) and Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China). Additionally, the department was participating in Entrepreneurial Research in Germany and Europe. All research projects have a strong theoretical background, involve detailed empirical analysis and aim at facilitating political decision-making processes.

The Institute for Economic and Cultural Geography is currently doing research in the following projects:

• Innovative Potential and Networks in the "Metropolitan Region " Hannover-Braunschweig-Göttingen
• Resource Allocation and Incentives in Higher Education Systems in International and Interregional Comparison
• Informal Dynamics of Agile Firm Organisation in the Greater Pearl River Delta
• Regional Cluster Policies in Germany: An Interregional Comparison in Institutional and Political-economic Perspective
• Real-time evaluation of start-up and acquisition initiatives “Plug & Work” and “Zukunftsfabrik Produktionstechnik“ for the hannoverimpuls GmbH
• Localised Value Systems in Regional Clusters of Production in Optical Technologies in Germany
• Learning in global-local Networks – the Example of the Automotive Industry
• Sectoral-regional Cluster and the „New Economic Geography“ – An Empirical Test of main hypotheses for Germany