ZEW Economist Jan Kinne Awarded 2017 Geoinformatics Prize

Jan Kinne, a member of the ZEW Research Department "Economics of Innovation and Industrial Dynamics", was awarded the 2017 Geoinformatics Prize for the best Master's thesis as part of a ceremony held by the Munich GI-Runde on 20 February 2017. He also received the audience award for the best thesis presentation. The award is presented annually by Runder Tisch GIS e.V. in cooperation with the Technical University of Munich.

In his Master's thesis entitled "The Geographic Dispersal of the German Software Industry – Geospatial Analysis and Location Pattern Modelling", Jan Kinne investigated location patterning in the German software industry with reference to the geocoded Mannheim Enterprise Panel. He studied geography with minors in computer science and economics at both the University of Heidelberg and the University of Loughborough in the UK, before completing his Master's degree in May 2016. His research interests at ZEW are focussed on the analysis of spatial (mass) data.

The Runder Tisch GIS e.V. is one of the largest voluntarily organised networks in the field of geoinformation in Germany.  Its prize for up-and-coming researchers was first awarded in 2002. The prize recognizes outstanding degree theses in the field of geoinformatics and includes a total of EUR 4,000 in prize money, with EUR 2,500 being awarded to the best doctoral thesis and EUR 1,500 to the best Master's thesis.