ABSTRACT
The Routledge Handbook of Small Towns addresses the theoretical, methodical, and practical issues related to the development of small towns and neighbouring countryside. Small towns play a very important role in spatial structure by performing numerous significant developmental functions for rural areas. At the local scale, they act as engines for economic growth of rural regions and as a link in the system of connections between large urban centres and the countryside. The book addresses the role of small towns in the local development of regions in countries with different levels of development and economic systems, including those in Europe, Africa, South America, Asia, and Australia. Chapters address the functional structure of small towns, relations between small towns and rural areas, and the challenges of spatial planning in the context of shaping the development of small towns. Students and scholars of urban planning, urban geography, rural geography, political geography, historical geography, and population geography will learn about the role of small towns in the local development of countries representing different economic systems and developmental conditions.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part Section 1|88 pages
Small Towns
chapter 1|13 pages
The Functions and Local Linkages of Small Towns
chapter 3|20 pages
Small Towns
chapter 4|12 pages
Small Towns
part Section 2|108 pages
The Role and Significance of Small Towns in Socio-Economic Development
chapter 7|16 pages
The Small Romanian Towns
chapter 8|14 pages
From Informal to Formal
chapter 11|14 pages
Performance of Small Towns in an Economically Lagging Region
chapter 12|14 pages
Small Towns in the Energy Transition Era
chapter 13|13 pages
Contemporary Status of Small Towns in Bulgaria
part Section 3|110 pages
Small Towns in Rural Space
chapter 19|15 pages
Urban Growth Engines or Relational Proximity?
chapter 20|13 pages
The Role of Farmers in Small-Town Community Development in an Age of Austerity
part Section 4|104 pages
The Small Towns Planning Challenges