The “medium-sized city problem
Local public action in the face of urban shrinkage in Montluçon, Nevers and Vierzon (1970-2020)
Achille Warnant (EHESS/Géographie-cités), will defend his doctoral thesis in geography entitled: “The “medium-sized city problem: local public action in the face of urban shrinkage in Montluçon, Nevers and Vierzon (1970-2020)
Friday June 2nd
at 2pm
Room 0.033
Research Building South
Recent studies have highlighted the fact that medium-sized cities are more prone to urban shrinkage than other territorial categories, while alternative development strategies for growth are struggling to emerge in parallel. This thesis examines the way in which local elected officials have dealt with urban shrinkage since the 1970s in three medium-sized cities in central France: Montluçon (Allier), Nevers (Nièvre) and Vierzon (Cher).
This research first looks at the different ways in which the medium-sized city has been placed on the media and political agenda over the last five decades, in order to shed light on its recent emergence as a public problem. It emphasizes that different representations of medium-sized cities and the problems that affect them coexist in the public debate over time, testifying to the difficulty of concretely grasping the nature and geography of the problem that concerns them.
This thesis shows, on the other hand, how this vagueness contributes in some way to “blurring” the action of local public authorities which appear, in this context, ill-equipped to deal with urban shrinkage. Despite its structural nature, the phenomenon remains “taboo” for decision-makers, who thus attempt, in a constantly renewed way, to attract growth factors from outside through policies that “make images”, as can be seen today with the development of new digital technologies. An entrepreneurial posture that owes much to the accentuation of the symbolic and financial constraints that weigh on communities.
Thesis jury
Vincent Béal, Associate Professor, University of Strasbourg (UMR SAGE) – Examiner
Christophe Demazière, Professor at École Polytechnique de Tours (UMR CITERES) – Rapporteur
Beatriz Fernandez, Associate Professor at EHESS (UMR Géographie-cités) – Examiner
Sylvie Fol, Professor, Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonnes (UMR Géographie-cités) – Rapporteur
Marie-Vic Ozouf-Marignier, Director of Studies at EHESS (UMR Géographie-cités) – Director
Anne-France Taiclet, Associate Professor, Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonnes (UMR CESSP) – Examiner
François Taulelle, Professor, University of Toulouse (UMR LISST) – Examiner
