Methodological framework for shrinking cities case study research: northwest region of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

Urban shrinkage is an increasingly global phenomenon that equally affects large cities and small towns, as a result of complex social, economic and spatial changes, thereby causing the emergence of the so-called shrinking cities. This paper presents a model for the analysis of shrinking cities tailored to the needs of research in circumstances of insufficiently developed statistical systems for monitoring the complex structure of changes affecting cities. The model is based on an analysis of international research projects focused on this research problem, analysis of the legislative framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) and analysis of available data. The proposed model is tested on the territory of northwest B&H (Republic of Srpska - RS) and aims at mapping, analysis and typological classification of shrinking cities. It is assumed that the process of urban shrinkage is more prevalent than that of urban growth, and that most of the cities and towns in northwest B&H (RS) are faced with this problem, which is considerably more acute when it comes to small and medium-sized towns of this region.