COVID-19

How consumer behaviours changed in response to COVID-19 lockdown stringency measures - A case study of Walmart

We investigate the impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions, in the form of lockdown stringency measures, on consumer purchasing behaviours for essential goods over the onset of the pandemic

Virtual special issue - Internal migration in times of COVID-19

We aim to consolidate our knowledge of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on internal migration, discuss key lessons we have learnt so far, and identify areas for future enquiry

Quantifying the impact of COVID-19 on immigration in receiving high-income countries

We quantify the impact of COVID-19 on immigration flows in 15 high-income countries by forecasting their counterfactual levels in 2020 assuming no pandemic and comparing these estimates with observed immigration counts.

Local urban attributes defining ethnically segregated areas across English cities. A multilevel approach

We employed a series of multilevel models to explore the within and between city variations in the relationship across ethnic segregation, and key socioeconomic and built environment features of neighbourhoods.

Urban Exodus? Understanding Human Mobility in Britain During the COVID-19 Pandemic Using Facebook Data

We aim to analyse the extent and evolution of changes in the spatial patterns of population movement across the rural-urban continuum in Britain over an 18-month period from March, 2020 to August, 2021.

Visualizing internal and international migration in the Spanish provinces during the COVID-19 pandemic

we analyse the impact of COVID-19 on internal and international migration across the 50 Spanish provinces (NUTS-3 regions).

Understanding Human Mobility in Britain During the COVID-19 Pandemic Using Facebook Data

Existing empirical work has focused on assessing the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions on human mobility to contain the spread of COVID-19. Less is known about the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped the spatial patterns of population movement within countries. Anecdotal evidence of an urban exodus from large cities to rural areas emerged during early phases of the pandemic across western societies. Yet, these claims have not been empirically assessed. Traditional data sources, such as censuses offer coarse temporal frequency to analyse population movement over short-time intervals. Drawing on a data set of 21 million observations from Facebook users, we aim to analyse the extent and evolution of changes in the spatial patterns of population movement across the rural-urban continuum in Britain over an 18-month period from March, 2020 to August, 2021. Our findings show an overall and sustained decline in population movement during periods of high stringency measures, with the most densely populated areas reporting the largest reductions. During these periods, we also find evidence of higher-than-average mobility from highly dense population areas to low densely populated areas, lending some support to claims of large-scale population movements from large cities. Yet, we show that these trends were temporary. Overall mobility levels trended back to pre-coronavirus levels after the easing of non-pharmaceutical interventions. Following these interventions, we also found a reduction in movement to low density areas and a rise in mobility to high density agglomerations. Overall, these findings reveal that while COVID-19 generated shock waves leading to temporary changes in the patterns of population movement in Britain, the resulting vibrations have not significantly reshaped the prevalent structures in the national pattern of population movement.

Rural revival? The rise in internal migration to rural areas during the COVID-19 pandemic. Who moved and where?

We analysed the main types of rural areas pulling internal migrants in Spain and their demographic characteristics, namely age, sex and place of birth.

Sensing Global Changes in Local Patterns of Energy Consumption in Cities During the Early Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic

We provide high resolution estimates (450m2) of spatio-temporal changes in urban energy consumption in response to COVID-19.

Understanding Patterns of Internal Migration During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Spain

We aim to analyse the extent of change in the patterns of internal migration across the urban hierarchy in Spain during 2020