'The concept of the ‘shrinking region’ is a recent one (the term was coined at the beginning of the current decade), even though this phenomenon goes back many years. What is essentially new here is that in some cases the phenomenon of depopulation has now come to affect entire regions, including urban areas (‘shrinking cities’).The very definition of the concept is still the subject of debate. Even if the phenomenon of population decline is linked to other events, such as ageing, it is preferable to stand by the simplest definition, which is the reduction in the number of inhabitants of a particular region over the course of a generation. This is therefore the option that is commonly adopted.
The emergence of shrinking regions are well-known phenomena in countries such as Germany, USA, Russia or Japan, but are quite new in other geographical areas, such as southern Europe. According to the most recent predictions, by 2030 many regions of Northern Spain, Italy, Bulgaria and Romania will be shrinking regions heavily affected by very strong ageing processes, both in urban and rural areas.' (
http://spacesinconflict.blogspot.co.uk/p/shrinking-regions-r... )