Different combinations of methods and tools of planning and regulating urban development development are used across Europe. There can be noticeable differences in methods and tools between these countries and sometimes even between regions in the same country. Moreover, there are variations in attitudes about the need for regulating urban development across countries and regions. These questions are fundamentally linked to societal values and cultures, which in turn affect the scope, power, and culture of planning. The way planning is organised affects the distribution of costs and benefits of urban development to different groups in society.
The two key objectives of the course are:
1. To address some deceptively simple questions (e.g. What is a plan? What are arguments for and against planning? How are plans made and by whom? What does participation imply? How can plans influence spatial development?).
2. To examine experience in spa-tial planning in Europe and other parts of the world to gain a critical understanding of planning theory and practice.
After completing this course stu-dents are able to:
Text by Dominic Stead