“I attended the 2012 Summer Institute in Zurich, and it continues to rank among the most important professionalization experiences I have ever had. Not only did I form enduring intellectual connections and personal friendships—often with economic geographers in other subfields whose work I would not have encountered otherwise—but I gained a far better sense of how my work might help advance the discipline as a whole. As an intensive, multi-day experience with a select group of scholars, the workshop spurred a depth of engagement and discussion not possible at most conferences—I have often referred to its design for ideas on how to facilitate more substantial, genuinely transformative academic exchanges.”

Sarah Knuth, PhD, postdoctoral fellow, University of Michigan

“The Summer Institute in Economic Geography is a fantastic venue to engage with emerging debates and practices in the discipline and to network with both early career and established scholars. As a participant at the Institute (2014) I gained practical knowledge about teaching and professionalization that has greatly aided my development as a new faculty member. I also made academic connections that have led to collaborative research projects with colleagues from around the world.”

Theresa Enright, PhD, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Toronto

“I had the opportunity to attend the Economic Geography Summer Institute in Zurich in 2012. The opportunity was perfectly timed for me as I was about to embark on my dissertation fieldwork in the Fall of that year. First of all, without the financial aid the Institute provided, it would not have been possible for me to attend and I am grateful to the organisers for making that happen for me. The Institute was very well organised and reflected the hard work that went into it by the organisers as well as the hosts. The faculty represented a whole range of perspectives within the field of economic geography. Their talks at the Institute not only provided a great history of the diverse set of past and ongoing research in the field but also provided an insight into the new and cutting edge theoretical explorations being engaged in. Personal one-on-one discussions with the faculty also allowed me to better focus and contextualize the research questions I was about to examine in my own work. Aside from theoretical engagements in economic geography, the discussions also focused on other interesting issues such as practical applications in policy, negotiating the precarious job market, and academic writing and publishing.”

Aman Luthra, doctoral researcher, Department of Geography & Environmental Engineering, Johns Hopkins University

“Attending SIEG 2012 was a unique opportunity for me. In addition to the thoughtful discussions with all the important scholars that organized the event, it has offered me a more integrated global perspective of critical economic geography.”

Stelios Gialis, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Aegean, Greece

“Being part of the Summer Institute in Economic Geography in Zurich gave me a sense of belonging to a community of economic geographers, a better understanding of how my work fits into the discipline and confidence in knowing how to contribute to the field with my work. I have kept in touch with many of the people I met and have co-organised several sessions at international conferences since with several people, and we still do support each other. The opportunity to spend a whole week with an international group of people was priceless in establishing a mutual appreciation of our work and the building blocks of life long relationships. Please keep organising it!”

Ralitsa Hiteva, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Science Policy Research Unit and Sussex Energy Group, University of Sussex, UK