Young people as agents in regional shrinkage – commentary to Syssner

Abstract

This paper reflects on Josefina Syssner’s Fennia lecture “What could geographers do for shrinking geographies”. In this commentary, we extend upon and complement Syssner’s inquiry by suggesting that to gain a better understanding of regional shrinkage and shrinking geographies it is important to ask the who question as well. Shrinkage and the policies used to deal with it impact different people in different ways, and people have different abilities to react to these changes or to take part in shaping the policies. In this reflection paper, we focus on a specific age group that is often considered important in regional development and policy discussions but that has been ignored in the debates on shrinking geographies – young people. In the end, we ask what geographers could do to increase the understanding of and possibilities for young people to live a good life in shrinking regions in times of environmental crises.