GIS for Regional Science: From Spatial Data to Econometric Variables and Professional Maps

Abstract

Geographic Information Systems have become essential tools for empirical research in regional science, offering powerful ways to transform spatial information into analytically useful evidence. This training course introduces participants to the role of GIS in designing, preparing, and communicating spatial datasets for research on regional development, transport, land use, accessibility, economic geography, and urban and regional planning.

The course combines basic theoretical principles with practical GIS examples. It begins by introducing key concepts such as spatial thinking, scale, coordinate systems, projections, data quality, uncertainty, metadata, and reproducibility. These foundations are then connected to practical workflows for acquiring, organizing, cleaning, and analysing geospatial data. Participants will explore how GIS can be used to create research-ready variables through operations such as spatial joins, buffers, georeferencing, distance calculations, accessibility measures, land-use extraction, infrastructure proximity indicators, and attribute table management.

A central focus of the course is the bridge between GIS and quantitative regional analysis. Participants will learn how to move from spatial layers and maps to structured indicators that can be exported and used in statistical or econometric models. The course will also emphasise cartographic communication, showing how clear, professional, and visually attractive maps can strengthen academic papers, policy reports, presentations, and dissemination materials.

By the end of the course, participants will have a practical understanding of how GIS supports the full research workflow: from spatial data collection and processing to variable construction, map production, and preparation for subsequent econometric analysis. The course is especially relevant for researchers, PhD students, and professionals seeking to integrate spatial evidence more effectively into applied regional science.

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Understand key GIS concepts relevant to regional science research, including scale, projections, data quality, and spatial uncertainty.
• Collect, organize, clean, and prepare geospatial datasets for empirical analysis.
• Extract spatial indicators related to regional science studies.
• Prepare GIS-derived variables for statistical and econometric analysis.
• Design clear, professional, and publication-ready maps for academic and policy communication.
• Apply reproducible GIS workflows to research questions in regional science studies.

Practical and technical information for participants, which you can find below:

Software:

• Participants will need to installQGIS 3.44 LTR “Solothurn”, using the latest available 3.44.x maintenance release.
• QGIS is completely free and open-source. No paid licence, institutional account or registration is required. The workshop uses only the standard tools included in QGIS, so participants will not need to install any plugins, extensions, programming packages or additional software.
• The official download page is: https://qgis.org/download/
• Participants should select the Long-Term Release, version 3.44, rather than a newer QGIS release. The workshop instructions, menu paths and screenshots have been prepared specifically for QGIS 3.44.

Operating systems and installation:

• The workshop instructions are prepared for: Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit/ macOS on Intel or Apple Silicon computers
• Windows participants may use the standalone 64-bit installer available from the official QGIS download page.
• macOS participants should download the official QGIS 3.44 LTR installer. If macOS prevents QGIS from opening on the first launch, they may need to go to: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway
• After installation, participants should change the QGIS interface language to English, as all menu paths and instructions used during the course follow the English interface:

Windows: Settings → Options → General

macOS: QGIS → Preferences → General

Under “User Interface Translation”, they should select English and restart QGIS.

• The installation requires approximately 3 GB of available disk space. No high-performance computer is required, but participants should ensure that QGIS opens and runs correctly before travelling to the conference.

Laptop requirement:
Participants must bring their own laptops and power adapters. The course is fully hands-on, and each participant will complete the workflow directly on their own computer. The course cannot be completed using only a tablet or mobile device.

Pre-course technical check:

Before the conference, participants should complete the following short check:

1. Open QGIS successfully.
2. Go to Help → About and confirm that version 3.44 is installed.
3. Confirm that the interface menus are displayed in English.
4. Open Processing → Toolbox and check that the Processing Toolbox appears and contains groups of analysis tools.
5. Close and reopen QGIS once to confirm that the installation is working normally.

Installation should not be left until the beginning of the course, as downloading and installing QGIS may take approximately 10–25 minutes depending on the computer and internet connection. The teaching manual specifically recommends completing installation and this pre-flight test before the workshop.

Datasets and workshop materials:

• We will provide participants with a single workshop ZIP package a few days before the conference, allowing sufficient time for them to download and extract it before the course. They should download and extract the complete package before the course. They should not open or edit the files directly inside the ZIP archive.
• We recommend extracting the package to a simple location such as the Documents folder. On Windows, participants should avoid very long folder paths or folder names containing accented or unusual characters, as these can occasionally cause problems with GIS processing tools.
• The essential workshop workflow works offline once QGIS and the workshop package have been installed and downloaded. No internet connection, user account, plugin or programming environment is required for the main activities.

Required previous knowledge:
No previous experience with QGIS or other GIS software is required, and no programming knowledge is needed.
There is no compulsory preliminary reading or video. However, participants may find it useful to have a basic familiarity with the following ideas:

• spatial and non-spatial data;
• points, lines and polygons;
• layers and attribute tables;
• coordinate reference systems;
• joining a statistical table to a map layer.

These concepts will also be introduced during the course, so participants should not be concerned if they have not encountered them before.

Final recommendation for participants:
Participants should be asked to:

• install and test QGIS 3.44 LTR before the conference;
• set the QGIS interface to English;
• download and extract the workshop package before attending;
• bring their laptop and power adapter and mouse;
• arrive with QGIS installed and the workshop folder accessible on their computer.