- Shrinking cities
This article concerns the
decline ofcity populations in some locations. Contrary to the familiar industrial image of "boomtowns", the size of some cities has declined, despite a growth inworld population . Cities shrink when economic investment moves elsewhere in the world or when governmental policy creates a cycle ofdisinvestment . (See "redlining ") Although seldom referred to, the decline of cities is a general pattern of ourcivilization . Surprisingly, the number of shrinking cities has increased faster in the last 50 years than the number of expanding ones.Fact|date=February 2007Global context
The current population of the world is 6.5 billion people. Currently about 3 billion live in cities. The expected growth by 2030 in cities is expected to be 4.1 billion.Fact|date=July 2007
In the last 50 years, about 370 cities with more than 100,000 residents have undergone population losses of more than 10%. More than 25 percent of the depopulating cities are in the United States, and most of those are in the midwest.Fact|date=July 2007
List of shrinking cities
The following cities have lost at least 20 percent of their population, from a peak of over 100,000, since 1950.
United States
See also
*
Urban decay
*Rust belt External links
* [http://www.shrinkingcities.com/globaler_kontext.0.html?&L=1 Shrinking Cities Exhibition]
* [http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=5718 Shrinking Cities in USA]
* [http://www.erasmuspc.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=291&Itemid=32 Interview with German expert Wolfgang Kil on Shrinking Cities in Germany]
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