Towards brighter futures for European small and medium-sized towns: what can social innovation contribute?

Abstract

Social innovation has gained prominence in academic and societal debates recently, but its roots can be traced back much further back in time. Social innovation can mean different things in different contexts, ranging from small grassroots initiatives to systemic changes. So far, most social innovation projects, strategies and research take place either in large cities or in rural areas. There is much less attention for small and medium-sized towns, a settlement category often overlooked in urban and regional research more in general. However, a large share of Europe's urban settlements are small or medium-sized towns, and many of them are facing an uncertain future. Social innovation may offer good chances to improve the social sustainability and future perspectives of such places. In this chapter we support our argument with examples from the 'Bright Future for Black Towns' project about the future perspectives of small and medium-sized (post-)industrial towns in Europe.