Anna Rubin

Anna Rubin is a Counsellor with the OECD’s Local Economic and Employment Development Programme and the Manager of the OECD Local Development Forum. Previously, she was the Counsellor to the Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities and an Analyst in the Inclusive Growth team in the Office of the OECD Secretary-General. She also served as the project lead for the 2019 Regional Development Policy Ministerial Meeting, in which over 40 countries endorsed a joint Declaration on “Building Better Futures for Regions, Cities and Rural Areas. Prior to the OECD, she worked at a variety of policy levels, ranging from San Francisco’s Department of Children, Youth, and their Families to UNESCO. She has a B.A. in Psychology and a Master of Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley.

Main streets at a crossroad: Experiences from Australia

16 December 2022 Anna Rubin

Main streets are both economic and social hubs for local communities by providing access to employment, services and goods, and by serving as community gathering points. For example, in Victoria, Australia, Main Streets account for 12% of the state’s jobs and generate over AUD 50 billion in economic value annually.

Going local in a global crisis

07 January 2021 Anna Rubin

Going local in a global crisis – COVID-19 has unleashed the worst jobs crisis in a generation. The latest figures from the OECD’s Economic Outlook are striking. Compared to the last quarter of 2019, hours worked fell over 15% in the Euro Area, the United Kingdom and Canada in the second quarter of 2020, and by over 10% in the US.