Bright Futures: Reinventing European Industrial Towns and Challenging Dominant Post-Industrial Discourses
While discussions around post-industrial towns in Europe are frequently characterised by a discourse of decline, this overlooks the success of many small towns in navigating the changing economic realities of the last few decades. Bright Futures: Reinventing European Industrial Towns and Challenging Dominant Post-Industrial Discourses seeks to challenges conventional perceptions of these urban areas and explore their potential for adaptation, innovation and renewal.
Focusing on case studies in Finland (Kajaani), Romania (Fieni), Slovenia (Velenje),the Netherlands (Heerlen) and the UK (Corby), the research will explore the spatial, cultural and historical factors that shape the development of these towns and the ways that social innovation can be encouraged in different urban contexts. The findings will support communities, local authorities and academics across Europe in realising the possibility of a better future for towns that are currently overlooked in mainstream policy thinking.
Mary Hogson (Principal Investigator)
Nicola Bacon
Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
University of Eastern Finland
University of Amsterdam
University of Bucharest
Social Life Limited
The Young Foundation
- Establishment of collaborative working groups in case study areas to strengthen links with non-academic stakeholders.
- Capacity development of local stakeholders through webinars, workshops and other activities.
- Dissemination of findings to national and European actors.