Demographic Changes and Their Impact on Urban Economic Base the Case of Towns From the Łódź Voivodeship

Abstract

Structural transformations that have been taking place in Poland since the 1990s triggered important changes in demographic and economic urban structures. Poland’s opening to global processes brought Polish society to the stage of modern demographic development which has produced changes in, among others, vital statistics and spatial mobility of the country’s residents. Systemic and structural transformation of the country at the early stages has significantly undermined its economy, in particular, in urban centres. Very much needed restructuring of urban economies resulted in the closure or bankruptcy of many enterprises. The economic function of towns and cities and their demographic structure have changedprofoundly, exerting a mutual impact on each other. The paper is based on the assumption that there is a relationship between demographic changes in towns and cities and the urban economic base. Its goal is to identify the impact exerted by demographic changes on the economy of investigated towns. The problem is illustrated with cases of towns and cities in Łódź Voivodeship (territorial units with the city status as on 1 January 2018). The research time frame spanned 1995 and 2017.