Remote work, connected world

The Challenge

Despite the widespread adoption of remote work, there’s still much we don’t know about its impact on our communities and the relationship between urban and rural areas. This lack of knowledge leaves policymakers and businesses without crucial insights needed to make informed decisions. How does remote work affect various demographic groups? What are the long-term social, spatial and economic effects? What are the most suitable strategies to address the growing urban-rural divide? These are some

of the key questions R-MAP is going to tackle.

Our Approach:

R-Map aims to explore how remote work affects the urban-rural gap in Europe by mapping, understanding, assessing and predicting the effects of remote working arrangements. R-MAP uses state-of-the-art research methods and works closely with stakeholders to fully understand the impacts of remote work and provide data-driven solutions. By integrating various data sources and advanced

modelling techniques, the project intends to prepare us for future trends. Focusing on social, spatial and economic aspects, the project tackles the ongoing challenge of bridging the urban-rural gap, recognizing its complexity and the influence of remote work on each aspect.

R-Map employs an innovative Integrated Impact Assessment Framework, drawing on spatial, statistical and machine learning techniques to comprehensively analyse the effects of remote working arrangements on the urban-rural divide at the regional level.

Integrative Methodology

Building on existing research, R-Map advances the field by integrating diverse data sources, including large-scale surveys, open datasets and crowdsourced data. By employing a transdisciplinary approach, we aim to capture the multifaceted impacts of remote work on social, economic and spatial dynamics

Advanced Modelling

Our framework utilizes sophisticated statistical and machine learning algorithms to analyse complex relationships and correlations within the data. By training and validating the model across diverse regional contexts within the EU, we ensure its robustness and applicability across different scenarios.

Spatial Considerations

Recognizing the spatial dimension of remote work impacts, R-Map incorporates spatial correlation information into the model to assess uncertainties and facilitate risk assessment for regional policy formulation. Through spatial factor analysis and sensitivity analysis, we aim to identify key spatial indicators and their correlations to inform decision-making.

Visualization Tools

To enhance accessibility and usability, R-Map develops user-friendly visualization tools that enable stakeholders to interactively explore the economic, social and spatial effects of remote working arrangements. Leveraging state-of-the-art visualization libraries, our platform allows policymakers to visualize scenarios and assess potential policy implications.

R-Map’s Innovation:

R-Map stands out as a pioneering initiative committed to address critical gaps in current research on remote work. Here’s why R-Map is the forefront choice for understanding and addressing the urban-rural divide in the context of remote work:

1

Innovative Framework

R-Map introduces an Integrated Impact Assessment Framework that goes beyond existing studies, offering a comprehensive analysis of remote work effects across social, economic and spatial dimensions.

2

Transdisciplinary Collaboration

By engaging stakeholders from diverse sectors, R-Map fosters collaboration and co-design, ensuring that research outputs are relevant, actionable and inclusive of varied perspectives.

3

Advanced Analytics

With cutting-edge statistical and machine learning techniques, R-Map provides insights into complex relationships within remote work data, empowering decision-makers with evidence-based strategies for policy formulation and planning.

4

Accessible Visualization

R-Map’s user-friendly visualization tools enable policymakers to explore and understand remote work impacts intuitively, facilitating informed decision-making and scenario planning.

Project Factsheet

Project title: Mapping, understanding, assessing and predicting the effects of remote working arrangements in urban and rural areas.

Project Acronym: R-MAP

Grant Agreement nº: 101132497

Programme: Horizon Europe

Type of Action: RIA

Project duration: 01/02/2024 – 31/01/2027 (36 months)

EU contribution: 2.798.323.75€

(UKRI contribution: 201.412,50)