Urbanization in Europe: Past Developments and Pathways to a Sustainable Future (Sustainable Urban Futures)

This open access book comes at an opportune time, with ‘land take’ high on the EU policy agenda. It shows how over one million hectares in Europe became urbanized between 2000 and 2018, over eight times that which changed back to agriculture or nature. This book seeks to explain this development and offer suggestions on how to control it, drawing on the ESPON Sustainable Urbanization and land-use Practices in European Regions (SUPER) project. It presents up-to-date analyses on urbanization rates (land take) as well as densities and morphology (sprawl). It also discusses the impact of spatial planning instruments and other public-sector interventions. Finally, the book peers into the future by drawing up urbanization scenarios – compact, polycentric, and diffuse – for 2050, and reflects on their sustainability. It concludes with the encouraging message that policy can make a positive difference.

David Evers is a senior researcher at the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL), lecturer in planning at the University of Amsterdam, and the ESPON contact point for the Netherlands. He holds a BA in Political Science from Reed College, and an MA and PhD in Urban Planning from the University of Amsterdam. He has published on retail development, European spatial planning, renewable energy, and institutional theory.

Ivana Katurić is the director of Urbanex, an independent advisory and research organisation on sustainable urban development. Her clients include the World Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and ESPON. Katurić was a coordinator of numerous studies on topics such as circular cities, climate change and future ecosystems, and recovery and resilience plans. She earned her PhD at the University of Milan.

Ries van der Wouden is currently retired. He has taught at the University of Amsterdam and Amsterdam Free University and worked at the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP) and the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL). He received an MSc and PhD in Political Science at the University of Amsterdam. His work focuses on Dutch planning.