Narrative around tourism gentrification and urban shrinkagea qualitative approach to the case of Porto

Abstract

The focus of this research are the narratives told around tourism gentrification and urban shrinkage. In this article, we analyse the results of twenty interviews with different elite stakeholders from the political, academic, and entrepreneurial area in relation to the phenomenon of urban shrinkage in the municipality of Porto. We suggest that it is possible to identify common elements among the different approaches and thus reveal the existence of a consensual discourse around this phenomenon. We also critically analyse two fundamental aspects of this discourse. Firstly, we consider that it calls into question that the existence of a process of continuous population loss until 2017 constitutes a problem in terms of social and environmental sustainability in the city of Porto. Secondly, we suggest that this common narrative relativizes the negative effects derived from touristic pressure and the proliferation of a phenomenon of gentrification in the centre of the city.