Special Demographic Zone in Poland – in search for the gist of the phenomenon

Aim/purpose – The objective of this paper is to identify the gist of the Special Demographic Zone phenomenon by analyzing the changes in the demographic structure of the EU population at country and regional level. Design/methodology/approach – We have applied the Boolean keyword and subject term searches of scholarly articles published in EBSCO and EMERALD databases, as well as in Google Scholar, between 2006 and 2016, inclusive. The key words used in the analysis were: Special Demographic Zone and Special Demographic Zones. This systematic literature review enabled us to identify 15 scientific articles connected directly with the topic in question. Findings – We found that there are 3 strategies employed by the local and regional self-governments to tackle the demographic challenges. We present them as a 3A model, representing strategies: to acknowledge, to adapt and to (counter) act. We perceive the Special Demographic Zone, defined as a policy tool, as a specific case of an act strategy. Research implications/limitations – The main implication of the research is that there are already tools and mechanism ready to be utilized by the self-governments in order to tackle demographic challenges, which contribute to the local and regional sustainable development. The recommendation for local authorities is to determine which policy direction (as presented in the 3A model) should be embarked on in a given territory in order to maximize the sustainable effect of undertaken actions. Originality/value/contribution – The originality of this work lies in the development of a theoretical 3A model of self-government’s policy reactions to the encountered demographic challenges and in the conceptualization of a Special Demographic Zone as a special case of an act policy strategy within the broad framework of regional socioeconomic policy. Furthermore, the article draws on up-to-date statistical data.