Vol. 58, No. 1, Spring/Summer 2020


RELATIONAL ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY AND FIRM-LEVEL EXPORT

ACTIVITIES AT TRADE FAIRS: A STUDY OF SOUTH KOREAN SME

MACHINE TOOL MANUFACTURERS (p. 1-24)


Douglas R. Gress

Department of Geography Education

Seoul National University


Ronald V. Kalafsky

Department of Geography

University of Tennessee, Knoxville


Abstract


Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are faced with myriad disadvantages

when trying to enhance their competitiveness and expand into international markets.

International trade fairs (ITFs) are one way firms may mitigate these disadvantages.

This article deploys a multi-faceted relational economic geography (REG) framework

and four research questions to examine South Korean SME, export-related, ITF dynamics

and their resulting organizational, spatial, and structural outcomes. Results,

based on quantitative analyses of firm-level data, reveal the effect of firm-level variables

on the relational context at an ITF; the impact of organizational learning at

ITFs on longer-term, export-oriented routines; evidence of spatial and structural lockin

and avenues to counter them; the importance of an ITF in the innovation context;

and impacts of specific antecedents of power vis-à-vis relationship building and maintenance

taking place at an ITF. Implications for Korea’s SME and ITF policies as well

as broader implications for exporting and REG-based research are discussed.



MAJOR ISSUES IN COMMUTING EFFICIENCY: A LITERATURE REVIEW

(p. 25-34)


Wook Lee

Department of Geosciences

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania


Abstract


For the last several decades, metropolitan areas in the US and some non-US countries

have witnessed dynamic changes in commuting pattern. Commuting is bound tightly

with spatial structure in that the spatial mismatch between workers’ jobs and residences

may alter people’s journey-to-work behavior. At the aggregate level, regional

commuting efficiency has deteriorated and become a national concern. Researchers

define and measure excess commuting and jobs-housing balance with a view to providing

travel demand benchmarks. One suggested goal has been the reduction of the

spatial mismatch between workplace and residence through patterns of concentrated

multi-use developments. This strategy tends to promote jobs-housing balance, which

consequently decreases excess commuting. This paper intends to provide a general

review of the literature pertaining to the topics of commuting efficiency and its policy

implications on the spatial structure. The concept of excess commuting and jobs-housing

balance will be introduced and discussed in the following sections focusing on

main streams of the methodological development and their effectiveness as a planning

tool.


LEAD IS IN THE AIR: A CASE STUDY OF BERKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

(p.35-53)


Robert C. Ziegenfus

Department of Geography

Kutztown University of Pennsylvania


Abstract


Two Environmental Protection Agency databases were analyzed to determine the extent

of lead in the air and its possible relationship to elevated blood lead levels in

children. The Toxic Resource Inventory (TRI) data were obtained for all the lead emissions

in Berks County. The National Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) data for 2014

were examined for ambient and exposure emissions for all 90 census tracts. Lead

emissions for the largest TRI emitters were correlated with the ambient and exposure

concentrations in northern and northeastern Berks, but TRI emissions had little impact

in the census tracts of Reading where the NATA data were predominant.



NETFLIX HASN’T KILLED ME YET: THE RESILIENCE OF FAMILY VIDEO

MOVIE STORES IN A DIGITAL AND STREAMING WORLD

(p. 54-77)


Joseph Tokosh

Department of Geographic and Atmospheric Sciences

Northern Illinois University


Abstract


This study analyzes the closures of Family Video movie rental stores through a binary

logistic regression and two-step floating catchment area analysis. A dataset of over

660 Family Video stores was compiled for analysis. The regression analysis shows that

smaller, freestanding stores, and stores near food cotenants were less likely to close

compared to larger, shopping center housed stores. The floating catchment analysis indicated

that there are many more stores located in areas of low accessibility. However,

as accessibility increases, the likelihood of a closure decreases. Results are contextualized

within the retail geography literature and routes of future research are discussed.



HOW ABOUT THEM APPLES: PENNSYLVANIA’S EMERGING HARD CIDER INDUSTRY

(p. 78-95)


Alison E. Feeney

Department of Geography and Earth Science

Shippensburg University


Antonia Price

Center for Land Use and Sustainability

Shippensburg University


Abstract


Cider was an important beverage in colonial America, but its production has been

greatly limited in the past hundred years. With the recent growth in artisan beverages,

particularly craft beer, there has been a resurgence in cider. This project used exploratory

research to identify, define, tabulate, and map federal and state cider production

and identify legal discrepancies. Correlation statistics demonstrated that Pennsylvania’s

cider production is a statistical outlier and is much lower than the other top apple

producing states; however, the data appeared to be logarithmic, meaning that cider

production increased only with an extremely large increase in apple production. This

suggests that cider is often made with older or damaged fruit that may not sell well

at grocery stores or in farmers markets. Possible changes similar to neighboring states

may increase sales, bring economic opportunities to rural communities, and preserve

the state’s agricultural landscape.



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