Exchanging experience on the transformation of post-mining areas

Rybnik, a former coal mining city in southern Poland, has shifted to a service-based economy since the 1990s. The closure of the Ignacy Mine left an abandoned area in Rybnik’s Niewiadom district, which has been gradually renewed over the years and opened for visitors. Improvements include the renewal of former mining buildings, and the creation of a new public recreation space. As well as developing culture and tourism, the city now seeks to broaden the economic impacts of its renewal efforts, encouraging small and medium-sized businesses to thrive around the old mine. Rybnik turned to two French industrial towns for inspiration.