Guiding principles
The trend of globalization and regional economic integration not only creates opportunities, but also carries risks of imbalance in industrial environment and regional economy to Taiwan. In pursuit of re-balancing industrial and regional development as well as responding government policy direction of strengthening local industrial connections, CIER established the Southern Branch in Kaohsiung in 2017. The Southern Branch aims to be a indispensable source of expertise and research serving local industrial sectors and local government by leveraging CIER’s decade’s worth of experiences and knowledge, accumulated from its national economic policy research and consultation across the public and private sectors.

Research focus and objectives
The main research scope of CIER Southern Branch focuses on driving local economic transformation, covering topics such as “transformation strategies of local firms and industrial parks,” “innovation and startups driven by local emerging industries,” and “local economic effects of climate changes and quantitative assessments” with short-, medium- and long-term development plans. The Southern Branch is expected to serve as a resource integration platform for local public policy research as well as a hub to drive local knowledge-sharing and talent flows, boost innovation and vitality, assist in effective local governance, and promote sustainable industrial development.