On April 10, 2025, the academic symposium titled "The Evolution of Regional Industries in China: Research Progress and Prospects" was successfully held at the Institute of Economics and Social Development, Nankai University. Professor He Canfei, Dean of the College of Urban and Environmental Sciences at Peking University, was invited to deliver the keynote speech. He systematically outlined the frontier theories of evolutionary economic geography and proposed innovative pathways for regional industrial development based on the Chinese context. Professor Liu Binglian, Dean of the Institute of Economics and Social Development at Nankai University, delivered opening remarks, expressing gratitude to Professor He for supporting the institute’s lecture series. The session was chaired by Professor Zhou Mi and attended by faculty and students from the institute.
Starting with the disciplinary evolution of economic geography, Professor He traced the development from commercial geography to contemporary evolutionary economic geography over the past century. He emphasized that evolutionary economic geography breaks away from the assumptions of traditional neoclassical economics, highlighting dynamics, irreversibility of processes, and non-optimized outcomes. This framework offers a fresh perspective for interpreting the transformation of regional industries in China. From both theoretical and empirical perspectives, Professor He presented a comprehensive overview of the key concepts, multi-dimensional models, applications in China, and future directions of evolutionary economic geography, providing a panoramic explanation for better understanding this field.
During the interactive session, participants engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as the impact of the digital economy and regional industrial policy. The atmosphere was vibrant and intellectually stimulating, with participants eager for more.
This lecture was part of the Academic Lecture Series of the Institute of Economics and Social Development at Nankai University, hosted by the institute’s Regional Studies Division. The theme contributes to advancing regional economics to better serve national strategies and offers valuable theoretical references for the formulation of regional industrial policies. Looking ahead, the Regional Studies Division of the Institute will continue to focus on cutting-edge fields such as evolutionary economic geography and global production networks, promoting deeper integration of academic research, policy practice, and social service.
