Peter TOWNROE
Dr Peter Townroe is an economist with particular expertise in the policy area of urban and regional economic development. He has a background of thirty years of teaching and research in higher education, and in undertaking policy related studies for local and central government departments and agencies in both the United Kingdom and internationally.
For the period 1988 to 1997, he was in senior management positions in two universities, East Anglia and Sheffield Hallam, while continuing to be active in research and publication.
Developing country consultancy work includes studies for the World Bank: in Pakistan, 1974-5, on an Urban Sector Survey, responsible for the Industrial Location issues; in the Research Department 1976-78, reviewing of developed country experience with industrial decentralisation policy instruments of relevance to developing countries; in Brazil, 1978-1981, on the Sao Paulo Decentralisation Study, responsible for a large industrial location survey and evaluation of the impact of direct policy instruments and indirect policy context; and in Swaziland, 1983, for an evaluation of industrial estate development policy.
Also for the UNDP: in Indonesia, 1987, evaluating of industrial location issues and policies in relation to the development of Greater Jakarta; and in Malaysia, 1992, appraisal of industrial development policies in relation to the administration and powers of regional governments.
For DFID: the appraisal of the proposed Little Bay Urban Development on the island of Montserrat, 2005, (Team Leader and responsible for the Economic Appraisal).
Within the UK, studies undertaken, individually or in collaboration, for the Department of Transport, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Rural Development Commission, the Ministry of Defence, the Welsh Development Agency, Scottish Enterprise, many local authorities, two universities, the Economic and Social Research Council and various quangos: all on urban and regional development issues and the appraisal of proposed investments. The themes include local economic development strategies.
A member of the URBINNO Project 1985-90, a Volkswagen Foundation and European Union financed project in ten European countries concerned with Innovation in Urban Development.
Evaluation for the Economic and Social Research Council in 2004 of the 1997-2003 UK Urban Research Programme.
Studies for the TCPA and the RTPI, 1998-2000, and the University of Essex, 2001.