PILKKU - Qualitative growth trajectories of small towns and cities

The research aims to find out how Finnish small towns could strengthen their role as actors of more even regional development by using methods of urban planning and development. It is important to take care of small towns, as they establish a crucial part of Finnish areal structure by providing a geographical framework and infrastructure for a significant proportion of population, economy, and services. The ongoing trend of counter urbanisation triggered by Covid-19 pandemic offers good chances to develop smaller communities. There are also other drivers that favour small towns to focus on their vitality and well-being, like the ongoing reform of national health care system, which releases resources for local development. In addition to that, majority of Finnish small towns provide a good starting point for development work, as their internal and external accessibility is relatively good, they have versatile service networks, as well as healthy and safe living environments. It is also important that small communities are studied explicitly as urban units, in other words, as locations of spatial and historical frames for everyday practices, instead of only municipalities that originate from governmental processes. The project applies approved and well-tried development methods to tackle future challenges, like the fight against climate change and urban shrinkage. The regional contexts of the study are South-Ostrobothnia and the Tampere Region.

Project leader at TAU: Professor Ari Hynynen

Researchers at TAU: MSc (Arch) Annuska Rantanen, MSc Jaana Vanhatalo