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Lundberg, J., Eriksson, M. & Eriksson, R. (2025). [Debatt] Forskare vid Umeå universitet: Vad kan vi lära av Northvolt?. Västerbottens-Kuriren (2025-03-19)
Open this publication in new window or tab >>[Debatt] Forskare vid Umeå universitet: Vad kan vi lära av Northvolt?
2025 (Swedish)In: Västerbottens-Kuriren, ISSN 1104-0246, no 2025-03-19Article in journal, News item (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.)) Published
Abstract [sv]

Det krävs en bred och oberoende analys av experter med olika kompetens. Låt den oberoende forskningen vid svenska lärosäten vara med och bidra med kunskap i syfte att öka sannolikheten för att den har typen av investeringar i framtiden ska bli lyckade ur ett klimat, samhällsekonomiskt, demokratiskt och socialt hållbart perspektiv

Keywords
Norra sverige, grön omställning, Northvolt
National Category
Economics Human Geography Economic Geography
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography; Economics
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-238681 (URN)
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029
Available from: 2025-05-12 Created: 2025-05-12 Last updated: 2025-05-13Bibliographically approved
Eriksson, M., Eriksson, R. & Rönnblom, M. (2025). [Debatt] Inte märkligt att Kiruna säger nej till grafitgruvan. Dagens Samhälle (2025-02-10)
Open this publication in new window or tab >>[Debatt] Inte märkligt att Kiruna säger nej till grafitgruvan
2025 (Swedish)In: Dagens Samhälle, ISSN 1652-6511, no 2025-02-10Article in journal, News item (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.)) Published
Abstract [sv]

Regeringens ointresse för människors livsvillkor i kämpande kommuner riskerar att underminera tron på den gröna omställningen, skriver tre forskare.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Stockholm: Dagens Samhälle; Bonnier Business Media AB, 2025
Keywords
Klimat och miljö, grön omställning, gruvor
National Category
Economic Geography Human Geography Political Science (Excluding Peace and Conflict Studies)
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography; political science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-238660 (URN)
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029
Available from: 2025-05-11 Created: 2025-05-11 Last updated: 2025-05-12Bibliographically approved
Henning, M., Eriksson, R., Garefelt, P., Martin, H. & Elekes, Z. (2025). Job relatedness, local skill coherence and economic performance: a job postings approach. Regional Studies, Regional Science, 12(1), 95-122
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Job relatedness, local skill coherence and economic performance: a job postings approach
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2025 (English)In: Regional Studies, Regional Science, E-ISSN 2168-1376, Vol. 12, no 1, p. 95-122Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

The local presence and composition of skills is commonly thought to have enormous implications foreconomic development. Yet, skills and the relations between them are notoriously difficult to pinpointand measure. We develop a method that uses information available in Swedish job postings tomeasure the skill-relatedness of jobs and the skill-coherence of local economies. Our skill-relatednessmeasure can be assumed to be exogenous to local economic outcomes such as wages, productivity andlabour mobility. We corroborate some previous research findings and show that workers tend to switchbetween related jobs and that local economies are on average skill-coherent. However, less coherentlocal economies are associated with higher average wages and productivity. Local economies whereworkers switch between related jobs though enjoy higher average wages. In all, this points to thebenefit of local labour market clusters within more diverse regions. We conclude that job postingsprovide a wealth of information on the skill-foundations of local development. A job-level skill-relatedness matrix accompanies the paper.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Routledge, 2025
Keywords
Job postings, skill-relatedness, local skill coherence, regional agglomeration, labour flows
National Category
Economic Geography
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-236602 (URN)10.1080/21681376.2025.2459148 (DOI)001425469500001 ()2-s2.0-85218035396 (Scopus ID)
Funder
Forte, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, 2021-01573
Available from: 2025-03-17 Created: 2025-03-17 Last updated: 2025-03-18Bibliographically approved
Garefelt, P., Hane-Weijman, E. & Eriksson, R. (2025). Labour demand in a 'green megaproject': regional path creation or continuity following the entry of Northvolt?. Global Challenges & Regional Science, 1, Article ID 100007.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Labour demand in a 'green megaproject': regional path creation or continuity following the entry of Northvolt?
2025 (English)In: Global Challenges & Regional Science, ISSN 3050-502X, Vol. 1, article id 100007Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

This paper uses register data and open vacancy data to determine if green industries require different skills than other employers. This is done by focusing on how the entry of the battery producer Northvolt changed the labour demand when establishing in Skellefteå (Sweden). Using data on all vacancies in Sweden 2016–2023 we analyse the skill- and knowledge demand in Northvolt's job ads and compare that to the labour demand at the local, regional and national level. In terms of occupations, we find only minor tendencies towards a higher demand of higher-skilled jobs compared to incumbent local employers, but an increase of service work and a reinforcement of the local manual work specialization. Using language models, we combine the vacancies with a scheme of skills and knowledge from the ESCO-taxonomy. Interestingly, Northvolt deviates in both the skill- and knowledge requirements compared to similar jobs in the rest of the country. This especially concerns a greater emphasis on information, collaboration and communication skills in contrast to other employers who stress manufacturing experience. Despite these skill-specific differences, our experimental approach finds little evidence that the entry spurred a significant diversification and upgrading of the regional labour market.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2025
Keywords
Labour demand, Green megaproject, Green skills, Battery production, Northvolt, Regional development, Job postings
National Category
Economic Geography Human Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-236603 (URN)10.1016/j.gcrs.2025.100007 (DOI)
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029Forte, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, 2021-01573
Available from: 2025-03-17 Created: 2025-03-17 Last updated: 2025-03-18Bibliographically approved
Eriksson, M., Lundgren, A. S. & Eriksson, R. (2025). The heroes and killjoys of green megaprojects: a feminist critique. Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Article ID rsaf002.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>The heroes and killjoys of green megaprojects: a feminist critique
2025 (English)In: Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, ISSN 1752-1378, E-ISSN 1752-1386, article id rsaf002Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]

Using a broad range of materials (media and interviews), we analyse the development of three green megaprojects in the two northernmost regions of Sweden. We find support for the presence of a strong ideological fantasy tied to a few “green heroes”, supporting the notion that the investments are the ultimate answer not only to climate crisis but also to the territory’s perceived left-behindness. The symbolic construction of the fantasy also contributes to the production of killjoys through marginalizing and feminizing opposition to the megaprojects. Our analysis thereby points to the importance of a feminist intervention and critique of the neoliberal ideology that frames green megaprojects.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Oxford University Press, 2025
Keywords
megaprojects, green industries, feminist killjoys, regional development, Sweden
National Category
Human Geography Ethnology
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography; Ethnology
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-235525 (URN)10.1093/cjres/rsaf002 (DOI)001422653800001 ()
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029Swedish Research Council, 2018-01582
Available from: 2025-02-18 Created: 2025-02-18 Last updated: 2025-05-12
Näsman, M., Bergquist, A.-K., Björling, N., Eriksson, M., Hane-Weijman, E., Liliequist, E., . . . Eriksson, R. (2024). A promised land? Second summary of the research program. Umeå: Umeå University
Open this publication in new window or tab >>A promised land? Second summary of the research program
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2024 (English)Report (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.))
Abstract [en]

This research note contains an update of the research program “A promised land? Drivers, challenges and opportunities related to the (green) industrialization of Northern Sweden,” (nr. M22-0029) awarded by the Swedish Riksbankens Jubileumsfond’s in 2022. The document summarizes work in progress and is updated annually in different versions according to the requirements of the program. 

This interdisciplinary program aims to understand the economic, social, and political challenges and opportunities of the ongoing industrial transformation in northern Sweden. A key element of the program is to identify drivers, obstacles, and preconditions in a historical, present, and forward-looking process-perspective. 

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Umeå: Umeå University, 2024. p. 4
Series
CERUM rapport, ISSN 0282-0277 ; 80
National Category
Peace and Conflict Studies Other Social Sciences not elsewhere specified
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-233160 (URN)978-91-8070-598-1 (ISBN)
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029
Available from: 2024-12-23 Created: 2024-12-23 Last updated: 2025-02-20Bibliographically approved
Adjei, E. K., Eriksson, R. & Lundberg, J. (2024). Effects of an expansion in mining and manufacturing on public sector employment. In: Harry Flam; Nora Sánchez Gassen (Ed.), Regional economic effects of the green transition in the Nordic Region: (pp. 179-210). Nordregio
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Effects of an expansion in mining and manufacturing on public sector employment
2024 (English)In: Regional economic effects of the green transition in the Nordic Region / [ed] Harry Flam; Nora Sánchez Gassen, Nordregio , 2024, p. 179-210Chapter in book (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

Recent large investments in northern Sweden connected to the green transition – primarily within mining and manufacturing (fossil-free steel, batteries) – have led to substantial increases in local demand for labour. In a territory with low unemployment and a decreasing labour supply due to ageing and a history of net outmigration, there is a substantial risk that this increased labour demand will, particularly in the short term, draw at least to some extent from the public sector.

Against this backdrop, the chapter examines the dynamic effects of employment expansion in the mining and manufacturing industries on public sector employment in northern Sweden during the period 1990–2019. It also analyses which factors affect the probability of a worker leaving the public sector for a job in manufacturing or mining.

Our results suggest that the expansion of manufacturing and, in particular, mining has a negative short-term effect on public sector employment. The largest effect is attributable to poaching from public administration, with education and health less affected. Assuming a linear trend based on previous labour market interdependencies, a three standard deviation increase in mining (about 2,700 new jobs) and manufacturing (about 10,800 new jobs) could potentially lead to 8% of the current public administration workforce being poached. The results also indicate that younger individuals, low- and high-income earners, and those highly educated in the social or technical sciences are the most likely to leave the public sector. In the longer perspective, these vacancies go on to be filled by skilled but inexperienced workers.

A number of policy implications arise from the above findings. First, given the regional dimension of job mobility, policy-makers should consider how large investments influence the other parts of a regional economy, rather than simply attending to the immediate demands of focal industries. Second, while the poaching of public sector employees will inevitably occur, the functioning of the public sector also hinges on the supply of workers entering the labour market. There is therefore a pressing need to bolster the status of key public sector jobs and improve working conditions, thereby ensuring they are regarded as viable career opportunities when mining and manufacturing expands. The public sector should also ensure that it is in a position to attract and retain workers crowded out of the mining and manufacturing in the event of future rationalisation. Third, general policy interventions may not serve local needs, especially the spatial mismatch of available jobs and supply of workers. Support for relocation tailored to local demands is therefore crucial.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Nordregio, 2024
Series
Nordregio report, ISSN 1403-2503 ; 2024:25
Keywords
employment, public sector, mining, manufacturing, northern Sweden
National Category
Economic Geography Economics
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-232584 (URN)10.6027/R2024:25.1403-2503 (DOI)978-91-8001-131-0 (ISBN)
Funder
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, M22-0029
Available from: 2024-12-04 Created: 2024-12-04 Last updated: 2024-12-05Bibliographically approved
Dzalbe, S., Eriksson, R. & Hane-Weijman, E. (2024). Jumping scales and producing peripheries: farmers' adaptation strategies in crises. Geoforum, 148, Article ID 103910.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Jumping scales and producing peripheries: farmers' adaptation strategies in crises
2024 (English)In: Geoforum, ISSN 0016-7185, E-ISSN 1872-9398, Vol. 148, article id 103910Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Resilience has gathered significant attention from economic geographers, yet their focus has primarily centered on economic outcomes at the regional level. This approach often overlooks the intricate micro-processes and lived experiences during crises, assuming that individual resilience can be understood solely through macro-level economic observations. We argue that comprehending the questions of resilience 'to what means' and 'to what ends' requires that we acknowledge the importance of social reproduction and daily practices. Through semi-structured interviews with mink farmers in Denmark and by using the concepts of spaces of dependence and spaces of engagement, we first highlight the everyday practices and broader social structures that individuals aim to preserve and reproduce. Second, we draw attention to the application of a relational spatial ontology in resilience studies by discussing cross-scalar networks of individuals as an adaptation strategy. In so doing, we contribute to the resilience literature in economic geography by highlighting that resilience for individuals entails the reproduction of everyday practices. We also draw attention to the consequences of network detachment for individual livelihoods. Thus unveiling how peripherality is shaped and re/produced, rather than given, through the evolving networks of 'left behind' people in 'left behind' places.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2024
Keywords
Adaptation, Individuals, Peripheralization, Resilience, Social reproduction, Scales
National Category
Economic Geography
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-217396 (URN)10.1016/j.geoforum.2023.103910 (DOI)001129563100001 ()2-s2.0-85178128128 (Scopus ID)
Funder
Forte, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, 2019-00152Swedish Research Council Formas, 2019-00664
Available from: 2023-12-01 Created: 2023-12-01 Last updated: 2025-04-24Bibliographically approved
Eriksson, R. (2024). National outlook: Sweden. In: Elin Slätmo (Ed.), Strategies to address Nordic rural labour shortage: (pp. 120-139). Nordiska ministerrådet, Nordregio
Open this publication in new window or tab >>National outlook: Sweden
2024 (English)In: Strategies to address Nordic rural labour shortage / [ed] Elin Slätmo, Nordiska ministerrådet, Nordregio , 2024, p. 120-139Chapter in book (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

In discussing the regional dimensions of skills supply, this chapter has sought to demonstrate that the local reasons behind skills shortages vary. The key challenge facing many of Sweden’s rural regions is an absolute shortage of workers, which has been exacerbated in some regions by demand shocks related to rapid re- industrialisation. At the same time, there are municipalities (rural and particularly urban) with varying vacancy rates that are also experiencing high unemployment. This indicates local pockets of mismatch, with vacancies not matching the skills of the unemployed both in broader functional regions around urban cores and in relatively solitary rural regions. Moreover, it points to a spatial mismatch between vacancies on the one hand and the unemployed on the other

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Nordiska ministerrådet, Nordregio, 2024
Series
Nordregio Report, ISSN 1403-2503 ; 23
Keywords
Rural, work, labour, shortage, strategies, Nordics, Denmark, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Åland
National Category
Economic Geography
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-232901 (URN)10.6027/R2024:23.1403-2503 (DOI)978-91-8001-129-7 (ISBN)978-91-8001-128-0 (ISBN)978-91-8001-124-2 (ISBN)
Available from: 2024-12-13 Created: 2024-12-13 Last updated: 2024-12-16Bibliographically approved
Berg, T., Eriksson, R. & Linse, L. (2024). Policyverkstad - kompetensförsörjning: en rapport från Uppdrag landsbygd. Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet (SLU)
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Policyverkstad - kompetensförsörjning: en rapport från Uppdrag landsbygd
2024 (Swedish)Report (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.))
Abstract [sv]

SLU arbetar sedan 2019 med regeringsuppdraget ”Uppdrag landsbygd”, som syftar till att stärka forskningen om Sveriges landsbygder och främja samverkan mellan de aktörer som bedriver forskning och arbetar inom landsbygds- och regional utveckling i Sverige. En del i uppdraget handlar om att bistå landsbygds- och infrastrukturdepartementet med policyrelevant information. I arbetet mot detta har vi inom Uppdrag landsbygd utvecklat så kallade policyverkstäder - workshopserier där forskare möts för att diskutera utpekade teman som är centrala för Sveriges landsbygder och som departementet önskar få inspel kring i arbetet med att ta fram beslutsunderlag till politiken. Syftet med processerna är att identifiera behov av ny policy för att adressera utmaningar och möjligheter för utveckling av svenska landsbygder inom respektive tema. Denna rapport är en bearbetad sammanfattning av resultatet från policyverkstaden på temat livsmedelsberedskap och skildrar de argument som presenterades av forskarna som deltog i workshopen.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet (SLU), 2024. p. 26
Series
Urban and rural reports ; 2024:2
Keywords
livsmedelsberedskap, landsbygd, landsbygdsutveckling
National Category
Social and Economic Geography
Research subject
Social and Economic Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-229867 (URN)978-91-85735-64-8 (ISBN)
Available from: 2024-09-19 Created: 2024-09-19 Last updated: 2024-12-11Bibliographically approved
Projects
Creative destruction, destructive destruction and labour market dynamics: Longitudinal trajectories from regional crisis to new successful combinations? [2013-01313_Forte]; Umeå UniversityKinship in the Swedish labor market [P13-1044:1_RJ]; Umeå University; Publications
Adjei, E. & Eriksson, R. (2021). Family co-occurrence and firm productivity. In: Basco R, Stough R, Suwala L (Ed.), Family Business and Regional Development: (pp. 83-102). Routledge
The Economic Geography of Social Networks [2016-01803_VR]; Umeå University; Publications
Ilyés, V., Boza, I., Lőrincz, L. & Eriksson, R. H. (2023). How to enter high-opportunity places? The role of social contacts for residential mobility. Journal of Economic Geography, 23(2), 371-395Lőrincz, L., Chihaya Da Silva, G. K., Hannák, A., Takacs, D., Lengyel, B. & Eriksson, R. (2020). Global connections and the structure of skills in local co-worker networks. Applied Network Science, 5, Article ID 78.
Entrepreneurship in peripheries. Where and how can peripheral regions benefit from social ties and social embeddedness of nascent entrepreneurs? [2019-00664_Formas]; Umeå University; Publications
Habersetzer, A., Rataj, M., Eriksson, R. & Mayer, H. (2021). Entrepreneurship in rural regions: The role of industry experience and home advantage for newly founded firms. Regional studies, 55(5), 936-950
Det nya framtidslandet? Drivkrafter, utmaningar och möjligheter i relation till norra Sveriges (gröna) industrialisering [M22-0029_RJ]; Umeå University; Publications
Ballor, G. & Näsman, M. (2025). Cars and climate change: the historical political economy of a green transition (1ed.). In: Teresa da Silva Lopes; Paul Duguid; Robert Fredona (Ed.), Climate change and business: historical perspectives (pp. 30-52). London; New York: RoutledgeLundberg, J., Eriksson, M. & Eriksson, R. (2025). [Debatt] Forskare vid Umeå universitet: Vad kan vi lära av Northvolt?. Västerbottens-Kuriren (2025-03-19)Eriksson, M., Eriksson, R. & Rönnblom, M. (2025). [Debatt] Inte märkligt att Kiruna säger nej till grafitgruvan. Dagens Samhälle (2025-02-10)Garefelt, P., Hane-Weijman, E. & Eriksson, R. (2025). Labour demand in a 'green megaproject': regional path creation or continuity following the entry of Northvolt?. Global Challenges & Regional Science, 1, Article ID 100007. Eriksson, M., Lundgren, A. S. & Eriksson, R. (2025). The heroes and killjoys of green megaprojects: a feminist critique. Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Article ID rsaf002. Näsman, M., Bergquist, A.-K., Björling, N., Eriksson, M., Hane-Weijman, E., Liliequist, E., . . . Eriksson, R. (2024). A promised land? Second summary of the research program. Umeå: Umeå UniversityViklund, R., Lindmark, M. & Bergquist, A.-K. (2024). Det nya framtidslandet?. Historisk Tidskrift, 144(3), 514-526Näsman, M. (2024). [DN debatt] Northvolt är för viktigt för att tillåtas gå under. Dagens nyheter (2024-09-20)Adjei, E. K., Eriksson, R. & Lundberg, J. (2024). Effects of an expansion in mining and manufacturing on public sector employment. In: Harry Flam; Nora Sánchez Gassen (Ed.), Regional economic effects of the green transition in the Nordic Region: (pp. 179-210). NordregioEriksson, M., Lundgren, A. S. & Liliequist, E. (2024). Logics of competition: the forming of opinion in the bid for a green mega investment. Geografiska Annaler. Series B, Human Geography
Organisations
Identifiers
ORCID iD: ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0003-3570-7690

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