Shrinking Cities or Resilient Communities? The Future of Kuzbass Coal Towns in the Post-Coal Era

Tabuldina, Daria (2025) Shrinking Cities or Resilient Communities? The Future of Kuzbass Coal Towns in the Post-Coal Era. URBAN INNOVATION: TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO CITIES HAVE GONE BEFORE. Medium sized cities and towns as a major arena of global urbanisation. Proceedings of REAL CORP 2025, 30th Intl. Conference on Urban Development, Regional Planning and Information Society. pp. 1165-1168. ISSN 2521-3938

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Abstract

Amid the global energy transition, coal-producing regions are forced to rethink their development trajectories. Kuzbass – Russia’s largest coal-mining region – remains structurally dependent on the coal industry despite a growing crisis: falling production volumes, rising export risks, and weakening economic indicators. This article examines the conflicting narratives surrounding the future of coal-dependent towns, drawing on official policy documents, regional strategies, and media discourse. While the challenges facing the industry are increasingly recognized, the fate of the towns themselves – and the people living in them – remains largely absent from the public conversation. The paper argues that without explicit planning and differentiated territorial strategies, these cities risk entering a phase of unmanaged shrinkage. Territorial master plans are discussed as a potential instrument for more realistic and adaptive approaches to transition.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Kuzbass, coal industry, mono-industrial towns, energy transition, shrinkage
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
T Technology > TA Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
Depositing User: The CORP Team
Date Deposited: 26 May 2025 13:11
Last Modified: 07 Jul 2025 11:06
URI: http://repository.corp.at/id/eprint/1248

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