Insights
Regional economics, done properly. Thirty years of practice, being distilled into method notes, working papers and articles.
Last updated 31 August 2026
SED’s practice is built on method, and method is worth sharing. These working papers and method notes set out how we think about the questions our clients bring us, from investment cases and discount rates through to knowledge-based regional development strategy. They are written for the people who commission this work: council economic development managers, RDA committees, board members, senior public sector leaders and regional industry heads.
Why Regional Development Needs a New Playbook: Knowledge, KIBS and the Ecosystem Question
Population has grown and infrastructure has been built, yet the productivity gap between Victoria and its regional cities has widened anyway. The economy regional cities now operate in runs on knowledge. And knowledge behaves differently.
ReadThe Real Benefit of a University Campus to a Regional Town
What is a campus actually worth to a regional town? The answers that circulate are almost always too low: most impact assessments miss the human-capital value that accumulates once graduates go to work in the surrounding region.
ReadKIBS in Regional Australia: Why Knowledge Services Are the New Growth Engine
The sharpest-growing part of a regional economy now sits in an office above a main street shopfront, selling expertise rather than a physical product. Regional Australia has become one of the more interesting growth stories in knowledge-intensive business services.
ReadDiscount Rates for Regional Infrastructure: What Rate Should You Use in 2026?
The discount rate often decides whether a project clears the funding bar. In 2026, Australia's discount rate settings are more fragmented across jurisdictions than they have been in decades.
ReadEconomic Impact Assessment vs Cost-Benefit Analysis: Which Does Your Regional Project Need?
An economic impact assessment and a cost-benefit analysis answer different questions, for different audiences, and are not substitutes for one another. Getting the distinction right determines whether your business case survives contact with a funding body.
ReadBenefits Realisation Frameworks for Regional Infrastructure Projects
Business cases open with confident numbers; two years later, almost nobody checks whether any of it happened. That is close to the norm, and 'we'll assess the benefits later' should be treated as a planning risk, not an administrative afterthought.
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