Managing Population Decline Well

Abstract

Demographic decline is an unruly phenomenon, whether it concerns the causes or the consequences. Decline refers to decreasing birth rates, but also about where people want to live. Decline refers to the society in the future, but also about libraries that have nearly run out of visitors. Decline indicates transition, quality of life, and sustainability, but also refers to aldermen who would do anything to be re-elected. No wonder that all sorts of disciplines say something sensible about depopulation. This book has mainly focused on theories, applications, and examples from demography, sociology, and geography. This last chapter summarises some important insights into population decline and comes up with policy recommendation. This will be done by means of six statements on managing population decline in city and country. This is followed by a plea to explore the other side of demographic decline.