Abstract

The emergence of new regional paths is a key topic in economic geography. While new paths are largely associated with positive regional economic outcomes, little is known about how the formation of a new industry affects other parts of the regional economy. By linking recent conceptual advancements on early path formation and interpath relationships, this article develops a framework for studying how path creation, as a result of diverse resource formation processes, can cause reformation processes of existing industries. The value of the framework is illustrated in a case study on the tourism path formation process in the Zambezi region (Namibia) and its impacts on the agricultural sector. The findings reveal how the path formation has caused new forms of intraregional inequalities as well as novel opportunities for the existing agricultural sector depending on the interpath relationship. Beyond these case study–specific findings, the results emphasize the importance of a broader perspective that goes beyond a single new path and includes nonparticipating regional actors in the analysis. Only in this way can we understand how new path creation translates into regional economic development.

摘要

新区域路径的出现是经济地理学的一个关键课题。虽然新路径在很大程度上与积极的区域经济成果相关，但人们对新产业的形成如何影响区域经济的其他部分知之甚少。通过将早期路径形成和路径间关系的最新概念进展联系起来，本文开发了一个框架，用于研究路径创建（作为不同资源形成过程的结果）如何导致现有产业的改革过程。赞比西地区（纳米比亚）旅游路径形成过程及其对农业部门影响的案例研究说明了该框架的价值。研究结果揭示了路径形成如何导致新形式的区域内不平等以及取决于路径间关系的现有农业部门的新机会。除了这些特定于案例研究的发现之外，结果还强调了超越单一新路径并在分析中包括非参与区域参与者的更广泛视角的重要性。只有这样，我们才能理解新路径的创造是如何转化为区域经济发展的。