This policy brief showcases a successful solution to rising unemployment, job-seeking out-migration, and dependence on coal mining through university-based urban regeneration. This was achieved in the early 1990s in Zonguldak – a medium-sized city in north-western Turkey, coping with deindustrialisation and demographic decline. Building on local knowledge and the first-hand stakeholders’ experience, this brief demonstrates how to deliver a knowledge economy-based local economic development solution that works effectively for the whole city. The key lesson learnt is that decision-makers should i) build on local historical specialisations and align the university’s potentials with new economic opportunities; ii) recognise how the local university could positively interact with the wider urban environment and local stakeholders; iii) evaluate potential strategic solutions to facilitate such an interaction; and iv) effectively manage the implementation of this strategic urban regeneration and economic development partnership.

3S RECIPE is part of the Joint Programming Initiative (JPI) Urban Europe's ERA-NET Cofund Smart Urban Futures Call (ENSUF). This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 857160.