Regional development refers to activities aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of a region, in particular through improving economic opportunities. This can involve improving local employment and attracting jobs, as well as building economic resilience to anticipate and respond to shocks and stresses, for example through regional climate planning efforts. It can also include improving networks of agencies, businesses, and educational institutions providing workforce development opportunities. It can help address barriers that limit career mobility and entrepreneurship and promote access to funding and support for small business growth.
In a broad sense, regional development is also about finding the right balance between growth that often favors the more educated and wealthier areas of a nation with policies that direct resources to regions with fewer economic opportunities. This can be a major challenge for governments in multiple democratic contexts, and for policy makers seeking to develop the economies of their nations with both sustainability and equity in mind.
Over the years, various authors in human geography have contributed to understanding the dynamics of regional development. They have emphasized the importance of noneconomic factors to understand these processes and have advocated that a policy of regional development should aim at integrating economic, social, and environmental goals. The concept of sustainable development is a result of these insights and seeks to ensure that economic growth does not deteriorate the ecological and environmental situation in a given region.