Shrinking cities: Rethinking landscape in depopulating urban contexts

*One of the ten most read papers of the journal*

This paper presents a general introduction to the role that landscape as a concept, and landscape architecture as a discipline, can have in the academic discussion on Shrinking Cities. This editorial explores and presents a general overview of the causes and impacts of urban depopulation in different world contexts, presenting a brief literature review on this topic. Moreover, it also explores recent population trends around the world and their expected evolution in the next decades, confirming that urban depopulation is worth exploring, especially in certain macro regions such as Europe, North America, and Japan. The paper concludes by focusing on the multiple roles that landscape can have under such pressured urban conditions. The collection of research papers presented in this special issue are the result of a conference that took place at the University of Edinburgh in November 2013, co-chaired by the guest-editors of this special issue.