Localism: identifying complexities and ways forward for research and practice

For every activity there is a certain appropriate scale … What scale is appropriate? It depends on what we are trying to do. (Schumacher, 2011: 50)

These sentences from Schumacher's seminal text, originally published in 1973, underpin the explorations of localism in this Special Issue of Local Economy. There is increasing emphasis, in research and in policy, on localism – on local, place-based operations and activities, decision-making and resource-allocation processes. Normative arguments exist which support the appropriateness of localism, bringing with them claims for empowerment, capacity building and autonomy.