Kovács, Z. ed.: Challenges of ageing in villages and cities: the Central European experience 331 L I T E R A T U R E Hungarian Geographical Bulletin 59 (3) (2010) pp. 331–332. Kovács, Z. ed.: Challenges of ageing in villages and cities: the Central European ex- perience. Department of Economic and Social Geography, University of Szeged, Szeged, 2010, 208 p. During the recent decades there have been two main trends of demographic challenges in our planet: over-population and ageing. The coincidence of these processes are without precedence during the population history. In global view the phenomenon of demographic bomb is over at its height. The process of ageing is developing strongly and it is impos- sible to forecast when and at what level it will culminate. In these respects there are enormous regional diff erences in our planet, too. The wealthier part of the world suff ers from the process of ageing, while the poorest countries make a bitt er att empt to combat over-population. But spreading development and welfare cause that the age structure of developing countries are gett ing increasingly older in the future. Ageing is anticipated to become one of the principal global problems. Ageing and its consequences represent serious challenges hereto- fore never seen in Europe and more particularly in Central Europe. For instance, the eff ect on health condi- tion of population (Daróczi, E. 2007), pension system and intergenera- tional transfers (Gál, R.I. et al. 2008), consumption behaviours (Illés, S., Végh, K. 2010) are the hott est topics of most recent studies in Hungary. Undoubtedly, the book edited by Zoltán Kovács contains current issues including perspectives on ageing, spatial spreading of the process in Europe, determinants of ageing (fi rst of all the declining fertility), and in- ternational comparison of the specifi c housing conditions among the elderly in some selected post-socialist cities. The second part of the book consists of case studies on Moscow, Bratislava, Prague, nine large Hungarian urban regions, Switzerland and on a small village in Romania. The authors of the book have different disciplinary background: 332 geography, demography, demogeography, geodemography, sociology, economics, and ethnography. The aim of this book is to provide a platform for scientists to exchange ideas on diff erent aspects of ageing in an eff ort to fi nd potential answers how the challenges trig- gered by the process of ageing would be handled on diff erent territorial levels. The volume was sponsored by the Hungarian National Commission for UNESCO. Aft er the preface by the editor and the welcoming address by György Enyedi, the fi rst research paper is that by Joos Droogleever Fortuij n entitled “The challenges of ageing: towards an inclusive perspective”. The author of the second contribution is László Hablicsek who provides a broad scale picture on “Population ageing in Hungary and Europe”. Ewa Fratczak and Iga Sikorska analyse the “Relationship between fertility and population ageing”. In the followings Zoltán Kovács emphasizes one of the partial results of an international research with special att ention to the “Housing conditions of elderly in post-socialist cities”. The unit of case studies is introduced by Irina Molodikova and Alla Makhrova with the paper “Ageing population in Moscow: Does the capital city suff er diff er- ently from the rest of Russia?” Branislav Bleha and Ján Buček depict the capital of Slovakia: “Theoretical issues of local population and social policy in ‘shrinking’ cities – some fi nd- ings from Bratislava”. Czech Republic was represented by two geodemographers, namely Boris Burcin and Tomás Kucera with the meaningful research material: “Changing age structure of population as a challenge for local authorities: Population prospects for city district Prague 3”. The Hungarian case study is a slice of the huge project. Viktória Szirmai, Zsuzsanna Váradi, Szilvia Kovács and Júlia Schuchmann deal with “The issue of ageing in large Hungarian urban regions”. Three scientists from Switzerland, Doris Wastl-Walter, Sabin Bieri and Andrea Ch. Kofler combine a theoretical question (abled ageing) with a practical one (the need for fl exible living conditions) in their article. Only one publication writt en by Tünde Turai tackles the problems of ageing in the countryside: “Strategies in the care for the elderly in a Romanian village”. This book is the fi rst in the row of future publications concerning the spatial as- pects of the phenomenon of ageing, its causes and consequences. Unfortunately, a highly relevant aspect did not appear in this book: migration. Internal elderly migration and mainly international retirement migration could be a topical section of the book. All in all, the reviewer recommends this book for those scientists and university students alike who are interested in the ageing process from the spatial viewpoint. REFERENCES Daróczi, E. 2007. Ageing and health in the transition countries of Europe. The case of Hungary. Working papers on population, family and welfare 9. Budapest, HCSO Demographic Research Institute, 55. Gál, R.I., Iwasaki, I. and Széman, Zs. (eds.) 2008. Assessing intergenerational equity. An interdisciplinary study of aging and pension reform in Hungary. Budapest, Akadémia Kiadó, 209. Illés, S., Végh, K. 2010. Hypothetical models of food consumption behaviour by the eld- erly. In Proceedings of the challenges for analysis of the economy, the businesses and social progress. Eds.: Kovács, P., Szép, K. and Katona, T. Szeged–Budapest, University of Szeged, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. Hungarian Central Statistical Offi ce, 699–706. 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