Uncovering Mechanisms for Resilience: Strategies to Counter Shrinkage in a Peripheral City in Finland

Kotilainen, Juha; Eisto, Ilkka; Vatanen, Eero

doi:10.1080/09654313.2013.820086

Cited by 48 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The conceptual approach of resilience is drawn from for discussing the ways in which regions and localities can manage pressures to change due to changing larger scale economic conditions. The article will then explore the various phases of industry life cycles in the case study town of Lieksa, Finland, and analyse the causes for each phase of transformation in these cycles (see also Kotilainen et al 2015). Finally, it will be discussed whether it is likely that another growth cycle will emerge.…”

Section: /67mentioning

confidence: 99%

Industry life cycles of a resource town in Finland – the case of Lieksa

Halonen

Kotilainen

Tykkyläinen

et al. 2015

European Countryside

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:The article aims to show how local industry life cycles impact the development of Finnish resource-based rural towns. This study reveals five long-term and overlapping industry cycles which were based on natural resources, assembly industries and service production. In general, the cycles have shortened over time.Transitions from cycle to cycle were enabled by the phases of resilience, which were highly dependent on political and economic processes at different scales. However, the political interventions of the last decades were unable to compensate for the disadvantages in competitiveness of this remote area and lay sustainable foundations for new industries. In the long run, the only exception has been the forest-related processing industry which has a capacity to renew its own operations and adapt to changing market situations. The results demonstrate the high significance of absolute advantage in rural development.Keywords: industry life cycles; resource dependence; local resilience; employment; regional policy; forested areas; Finland Abstrakti: Suomalaisten resurssiperustaisten maaseutukuntien kehitykseen ovat vaikuttaneet keskeisesti paikallisten toimialojen elinkaaret. Tutkimuskohteessa havaitut viisi toisiinsa limittyvää sykliä ovat perustuneet paikallisiin luonnonvaroihin, tuotuja raakaaineita ja puolivalmisteita käyttävään teollisuuteen ja palvelujen tuotantoon. Teollisella kaudella yksittäisen elinkaaren pituus on lyhentynyt. Syklistä toiseen siirtymiseen ovat vaikuttaneet eritasoiset poliittiset ja taloudelliset uusiutumisvaiheet. Viime vuosikymmenten poliittiset interventiot eivät ole kyenneet kompensoimaan tutkitun resurssiperiferian heikkoa kilpailukykyä ja luomaan kestävää perustaa uusille aloille. Parhaiten muuttuviin markkinatilanteisiin on sopeutunut paikallisia luonnonvaroja jalostava metsäteollisuus.

show abstract

Section: /67mentioning

confidence: 99%

Industry life cycles of a resource town in Finland – the case of Lieksa

Halonen

Kotilainen

Tykkyläinen

et al. 2015

European Countryside

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Small cities are the most widespread type of urban settlements in the world (Bell & Jayne ) and form ‘the backbone of urban systems’ (Weck & Beißwenger , p. 2156). Many of them in various countries are currently experiencing long‐term trends of depopulation (Karachurina ; Kotilainen et al ; Leetmaa et al ). For those cities located in countries and regions that are forerunners of the demographic transition, the growth and decline of the population is primarily driven by migration, reinforcing the tendencies of natural population development (Coleman ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Dull Place or Green Idyll: Local Identity and Migration Intentions of Small City Youth

Gunko

Medvedev

2018

Tijd voor Econ & Soc Geog

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Nowadays small cities often lose population. In countries which are forerunners of the demographic transition, depopulation is mainly driven by out‐migration of youth. Through a case study of students from small Russian cities, this paper explores the nature of the association between local identity (LI) and migration intentions. The study suggests that young people with a stronger LI are on average more prone to return to their native cities after graduation. This ‘traditional’ relationship may be related to the difficulties in maintaining strong ties to a place of personal significance when not residing there in the Russian context. However, overall, youth tend towards a negative association with their cities and LI is formed as an opposition: the denial of place validity. Therefore, both way associations are possible. While a strong LI may influence the intention to migrate, it may also develop as an adaptation mechanism for those forced to return.

show abstract

“…The 'bust' representing the abrupt decline results from deep shocks such as collapse in demand, the overexploitation of the resource or changes in market access, transportation or production technologies, often leading to declining employment together with industry adjustment, downsizing or closures (Clapp 1998;Keough 2015;Kortelainen & Rannikko 2015;Kotilainen et al 2015;Halseth 2017). Restructuring resulting from bust is portrayed as a multi-causal, contingent and path dependent process with uncertainty about the future, thus being anything but straightforward, mechanical or easy from the perspective of local policy-makers planning for long-term timelines (Markey & Heisler 2010;Hayter & Nieweler 2018).…”

Section: Peripheries With Resources Booms and Bustsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…2). Mechanised logging increased productivity in forest work but resulted in a deep decline in jobs in forestry work (Kotilainen et al 2015) that was exacerbated by closures of unprofitable small-scale farming (Rannikko 1999). With the rationalisation of primary production, the entry of the baby boom generation to the labour market and the temptation of urban lifestyles, whole families left their homes and moved to bigger cities in Finland or even further to Sweden (cf.…”

Section: Case Study Of Lieksa As a Resource Peripherymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Newer pathways have brought periphery studies closer to the dynamic orientation through the concepts of path dependency, industry life cycles and adaptation with the weight set on the institutions Ryser et al 2018). These pathways have also given rise to the framework of regional resilience -often blending in part with evolutionary economic geography (EEG) in the context of peripheries (Carlsson et al 2014;Isaksen 2015;Kotilainen et al 2015;Vatanen & Kotilainen 2016;Hayter & Nieweler 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The long-term adaptation of a resource periphery as narrated by local policy-makers in Lieksa

Halonen

2019

Fennia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The paper’s general objective is to question the point of view whereby peripheries are seen only through a static downturn with no reflections on dynamicity or adaptation. The focus is set on the standpoints of actors in local government and their interface with the broader structures. The aim is to create a productive dialogue with evolutionary economic geography studies paying attention to actors and resilience studies where the human perspectives in adaptation are emphasised. The town of Lieksa, Finland, is used as a case study to exemplify a forest resource periphery located in relative isolation at the regional and national scale, but within a developed economy in Europe. The results, based on interviews with key local policy-makers, show that development did not stop at the time of the first bust despite the domination of the downturn. The study reveals two waves of restructuring which both include a type of regional bust followed by different kinds of institutional recovery. In general, the human adaptation appears as reactions reflecting the variation of giving up, forward-looking acceptance, desperate resistance, re-orientation with external support and search for renewal with an optimistic attitude. Above all, the resilience regarding the local governmental actors emphasises their flexible adaptability and ability to develop institutional capacities to tolerate their vulnerability, the uncertainties of the economic future and the difficulties of locals to influence it – and if anything – to act and bounce forward in spite of repetitive busts and restructuring phases.

show abstract

Uncovering Mechanisms for Resilience: Strategies to Counter Shrinkage in a Peripheral City in Finland

Cited by 48 publications

References 14 publications

Industry life cycles of a resource town in Finland – the case of Lieksa

Industry life cycles of a resource town in Finland – the case of Lieksa

Dull Place or Green Idyll: Local Identity and Migration Intentions of Small City Youth

The long-term adaptation of a resource periphery as narrated by local policy-makers in Lieksa

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About