IGU  CDES

CDES is one of over forty commissions organised under the auspices of the IGU. Its history goes back to the 1970s when IGU decided to establish a new scientific commission for those studying economic issues and economic processes in geographical context in different parts of the world.

In the beginning the Commission was called “Commission on Industrial Geography” in connection with the rapid development of industry at that time. Later, due to the development and diversification of economy other names also appeared. The current name of the Commission refers to the dynamics of economic spaces which can be found at different levels of spatial organisation.

The changes in its name also contributed to the expansion of the scope of its mission and tasks, and thus the number of its members also increased. Among the members there are the representatives of different scientific disciplines (geography, economics, sociology, politics, regional science, history etc.). This fact can contribute, to a large degree, to the better understanding different economic phenomena and processes and their spatial impacts and consequences.

The annual conference is (one of) the most important event in the Commission’s life. It makes possible for the members to meet regularly, to discuss a given topic very thoroughly and to improve their scientific network, not to speak about publishing possibility. Every year this conference is organised in a different country.