With a training in economic and urban geography my research is focused on two related themes. The first is the political dynamics of urban development. I am particularly interested in the governance of the city  and how we might best understand the processes that enable and promote urban and suburban development. This interest is reflected in a number of research projects, the most current of which (with Kevin Ward, Manchester) examines the politics of urban revitalization in Lexington, Kentucky. 

The second theme is the endemic tension between the mobility and fixity of economic forms, activities and practices. The geographic 'stickiness' of economic activity is key to an ongoing research project, with Nicholas Phelps (University of Melbourne), examining the growth and development of the location consulting industry. Location consultants broker between large firms and communities seeking to attract capital investment. Findings from the research are set out in recent papers in Journal of Economic Geography, Environment and Planning A and Economic Development Quarterly.

2018 Phelps N and Wood A The business of location: site selection consultants and the mobilisation of knowledge in the location decision. Journal of Economic Geography. https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbx016

2018 Phelps N and Wood A Promoting the global economy: the uneven development of the location consulting industry. Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518X17730832

2020 Wood A and Phelps N Mediating Local Economic Development: The Place of Site Selection Consultants in Industrial Recruitment. Economic Development Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891242419897128

If you have an interest in my research, the current projects or the publications associated with them then please feel free to get in touch.