Browsing by Author "Turunen, Eeva"

This Master’s thesis is a literature review of how urban economics and urban ecology view an equilibrium city size and land use. The theses presents a synthesis from the two discourses together with combined approach how the topic of equilibrium city size could be approached in a manner which takes account the urban adaptation to climate change. The role of cities in climate change adaptation and mitigation is increasingly important as the world’s urbanization continues. Therefore the discourse on effective and sustainable city size carries not only local, but also global relevance. The effects of weather extremes and the warming climate are amplified in urban areas and adaptation to climate change should become increasingly central in urban planning. Urban ecology literature sees the role of ecosystem services pivotal in strengthening urban resilience to climate change. Diverse ecosystem services contribute to the human well-being and long-run sustainability of a city. Therefore, the economic significance of ecosystem services should not be underestimated. Urban economics holds unequivocally that a denser urban structure leads to greater agglomeration benefits whereas urban ecology has a more divided perspective on land use. Urban ecology sees that more dense urban structure is necessary in striving towards more ecological life style, but the research shows that this happens often at the expense of ecosystem services. The usage of the concept green infrastructure is common in scientific and EU level of political discourses, as it allows multidisciplinary approach to urban planning and land use. The thesis argues that by merging the concept of green infrastructure to urban economy literature, an environmental economic perspective to urban planning can be created.