Much attention is paid to the increasing number of people living in cities while a relatively understudied but related phenomenon is silently gaining strength: that of “shrinking cities.” In the context of massive economic restructuring and increasing globalization, a growing number of cities in industrialized countries such as the United States and Canada are experiencing a population decline. The usual approach of planners in shrinking cities is either to do nothing or to focus on “growing” their cities to previous population levels. To date, both approaches have been largely unsuccessful. This leads to the question I ask in this thesis: What are other possible approaches to planning besides a population and economic growth orientation that might be successfully implemented in shrinking cities? A small but growing number of shrinking cities researchers are encouraging planners in shrinking cities neither to focus on growth nor to ignore decline but to focus on planning to meet the needs of the remaining population. While improving the quality of life of existing residents should be the goal of planners in all cities – growing or declining – what is different about this approach in the context of shrinkage is the belief that shrinking cities can offer a high quality of life. In this thesis, I use four general principles of “good planning” in shrinking cities, collected from the literature, as a point of departure for comparing the recent planning exercises in two shrinking cities: Youngstown, Ohio (which has begun to tackle the issues of population decline in a way that is ostensibly resembles the principles of good planning) and Sudbury, Ontario (which has opted for the traditional “growth is the only option” approach). Based on a mix of quantitative and qualitative data, I find that the principles of “good planning” for shrinking cities are in practice difficult to achieve. Whether or not planners in shrinking cities will decide to adopt these principles is influenced by a number of factors, including the presence or absence of young, innovative leadership, levels of devolution and autonomy, current fiscal structures, local economic structure, and political dynamics.

Much attention is paid to the increasing number of people living in cities while a relatively understudied but related phenomenon is silently gaining strength: that of “shrinking cities.” In the context of massive economic restructuring and increasing globalization, a growing number of cities in industrialized countries such as the United States and Canada are experiencing a population decline. The usual approach of planners in shrinking cities is either to do nothing or to focus on “growing” their cities to previous population levels. To date, both approaches have been largely unsuccessful. This leads to the question I ask in this thesis: What are other possible approaches to planning besides a population and economic growth orientation that might be successfully implemented in shrinking cities? A small but growing number of shrinking cities researchers are encouraging planners in shrinking cities neither to focus on growth nor to ignore decline but to focus on planning to meet the needs of the remaining population. While improving the quality of life of existing residents should be the goal of planners in all cities – growing or declining – what is different about this approach in the context of shrinkage is the belief that shrinking cities can offer a high quality of life. In this thesis, I use four general principles of “good planning” in shrinking cities, collected from the literature, as a point of departure for comparing the recent planning exercises in two shrinking cities: Youngstown, Ohio (which has begun to tackle the issues of population decline in a way that is ostensibly resembles the principles of good planning) and Sudbury, Ontario (which has opted for the traditional “growth is the only option” approach). Based on a mix of quantitative and qualitative data, I find that the principles of “good planning” for shrinking cities are in practice difficult to achieve. Whether or not planners in shrinking cities will decide to adopt these principles is influenced by a number of factors, including the presence or absence of young, innovative leadership, levels of devolution and autonomy, current fiscal structures, local economic structure, and political dynamics.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Sveriges befolkning ökar i helhet och storstadsregionerna växer genom en stark urbaniseringstrend. Som en effekt av detta krymper nästan hälften av Sveriges kommuner sett till antal invånare. En minskad befolkning kan ge minskad ekonomisk tillväxt samt ge kommunerna problem att erbjuda service av hög kvalitet till sina invånare. Befolkningsminskningarna beror ofta på utflyttningar, låga födelsetal i kombination med att befolkningen blir allt äldre vilket leder till att det i många fall blir allt färre som ska försörja allt fler. En krympande befolkning är ofta ett känsligt ämne att tala öppet om, det finns en rädsla att kommunen ska framstå som oattraktiv om den förknippas med utflyttningar och befolkningsminskning, samtidigt som en kraftig befolkningsminskning är en aktuell förutsättning för många svenska kommuner. Syftet är att genom en kvalitativ undersökning av två fall se hur olika svenska kommuner hanterar en befolkningsminskning. De frågeställningar som behandlas är:  -   Vad finns det för strategier för hur krympande kommuner kan hanteras i planeringen       enligt forskningen?   -   Hur hanterar svenska kommuner en befolkningsminskning, vilka strategier används?   -   Överensstämmer kommunernas arbete med forskningen?  De dokument som analyserats har avgränsats till kommunala översiktsplaner för att få en förståelse för hur den svenska planeringen hanterar befolkningsminskningar eftersom de är långsiktiga strategiska dokument där kommunens politiker för fram sina visioner för kommunens utveckling och framtida markanvändning. Forskningen kring ämnet skiljer på anpassningsstrategier och tillväxtstrategier och det framgår att det i många fall för krympande kommuner kunde vara lämpligt att fokusera på anpassning istället för tillväxt. De strategier som kunnat hittas genom en forskningsöversikt har varit det teoretiska ramverket för uppsatsen. I arbetet har forskningsöversiktens strategier använts i en kvalitativ innehållsanalys av två kommunala översiktsplaner för att se vilka strategier som används och vilka som inte används. Viktiga resultat är att de svenska kommunerna främst fokuserar på tillväxtstrategier men även vissa anpassningsstrategier. Detta stämmer väl överens med hur forskningen beskriver läget nationellt och internationellt men forskningen föreslår ett paradigmskifte mot en samhällsutveckling i form av anpassning skulle gynna många av de krympande områdena bättre. / The Swedish population is growing but the growth is only occurring in regions with bigger cities because of the fast urbanisation. Over half of the counties in the country is losing population due to outmigration, low fertility rates and an ageing population, leaving a few to support a growing group of seniors. The population decline can lead to a lack of economic growth and that the counties have trouble providing high quality service to its inhabitants. The aim with the study is to examine how Swedish counties cope with demographic decline through case studies. The thesis examines the following research questions:  -       What strategies can be adopted by shrinking cities according to planning research?  -       How do shrinking counties in Sweden cope with population decline?  -       Is the Swedish way of coping matching up with the research?  A qualitative content analysis has been used to find what strategies can be found in two Swedish master plans. Important results from the study is that the counties are focused on growth oriented strategies but do use some forms of adaption. This focus on growth matches with the findings in contemporary research in the field of shrinking cities that suggest a paradigm shift towards smart decline and a focus on adaption for the shrinking areas.

Le concept de transition énergétique s'est imposé au cours de ces vingt dernières années, commenouvel objet de la recherche urbaine. Le présent travail de recherche interroge ce concept dans lecontexte des villes allemandes. En effet, l'Allemagne présente un intérêt pour deux raisons. Elles'engage dans une transition énergétique ambitieuse pour à la fois sortir du nucléaire en 2022 etdevenir climatiquement neutre à l'horizon 2050. Pour cela, elle doit compter sur les villes qui sontses principales alliées et des instruments de territorialisation de la transition énergétique. Or, depuisles années 1990, les villes connaissent des changements structurels majeurs qui les plongent, surtoutdans les nouveaux Länder, dans une dynamique de rétrécissement urbain. Les tendancesantagonistes de croissance et rétrécissement, fortement marquées en Allemagne, posent la questiondes capacités des villes à répondre aux enjeux globaux et aux injonctions de l'État, et à inclure cesdéfis globaux à leur propre stratégie de développement. À cet effet, les villes tendent à adopter desméthodes et instruments de que l'on peut regrouper sous la dénomination de managementstratégique urbain de la transition énergétique, encouragé et relayé par des niveaux supérieurs.Ce travail propose d'interroger ce management transition énergétique dans deux contextes urbainscontrastés que sont Heidelberg, une ville croissante et Dessau-Roßlau, une ville rétrécissante, deuxvilles qui se sont engagées dès les années 1990 dans la protection du climat. / The concept of energy transition has become a very popular urban research subject in recent years.This work investigates this concept in the context of German cities. Germany proves to be highlyrelevant for two main reasons: the country’s engagement in an ambitious energy transition with itsnuclear phaseout (2022) and its ambition to become an (almost) climate neutral country by 2050.Germany has to count on its cities to drive the energy transition since these are the main sources ofenergy consumption and emissions.However, since the 1990's, German cities, especially those in the new regions, have experiencedthe phenomenon of shrinkage. The striking contradictions of growth and shrinkage test thecapacities of cities to respond to global challenges and states' injunctions. In order to take action,cities often adopt methods and instruments (climate plans, participation, projects, cooperation)following on from what we can call urban strategic management for energy transition. This researchanalyses this management form in two contrasted urban contexts, Heidelberg and Dessau-Roßlau,that have been engaged in climate protection schemes since the 1990's.

The aim of the study is to investigate the current state of awareness of urban shrinkage inLiepājaby the key actors involved in the planning process. Last couple of hundred years have brought many transformations in urbanity that was always accompanied by the growth of the population and expansion of the city. However, the new patterns of urban development emerged in the last decades all over the globe, causing cities to lose the inhabitants resulting in urban shrinkage.Liepāja, the third largest city inLatvia, has lost a quarter of its population in last two decades and the trend continues. The long-term municipal planning document is being presented during this research in a light of which the research question is asked: “What is the current state of awareness of urban shrinkage inLiepājaby the key actors?” Utilising Flyvbjerg’s phronetic form of inquiry in combination with case study and repeated semi-structured interviews, the dominant planning views related to urban shrinkage are sought and analysed. The research identifies three underlying causalities that shape the decisions in planning and leave formidable consequences for the future of the city. The causalities identified and discussed in this paper are (1) the planning legacy; (2) the misconception; and (3) the political sensitivity of the urban shrinkage.