Attract and Connect Population decline and the heritage in Europe

Heritage opportunities for areas of decline

This book shows the relationship between population decline and heritage and identifies the opportunities that heritage can offer for areas in decline. Countries such as Germany, France and England have been struggling longer than the Netherlands. This process is almost always associated with the loss of major industries or mining activities, or with rural migration as agricultural workers become redundant. This history is reflected in the nature of the heritage that falls vacant, much of which is industrial complexes and the workers’ housing that goes with them, or empty village and rural homes and village amenities like shops, post offices and schools.