Exploring new ways to measure rural–urban connections
Nov 26, 2025 | 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Conference room
Description
Exploring new ways to measure rural–urban connections in OECD countries focuses on developing multidimensional indicators and refining typologies to capture the complexity of these relationships. Rural–urban connections extend beyond municipal or regional borders. Effective measurement must go beyond physical proximity to include flows of people, goods, services, capital, and knowledge. It should also incorporate measures of digital connectivity, labour mobility, investment networks, and environmental linkages. Functional approaches—based on commuting patterns, service flows, and supply chains—provide insights into the dynamics between different areas. . Measuring how rural–urban linkages influence well-being outcomes, such as jobs, housing, access to services, and environmental quality, reveals the interdependencies and spillovers that drive regional development. This session will explore nuanced, dynamic, and functional measurements, using emerging data sources and targeted typologies, to accurately understand and strengthen rural–urban connections.
