This textbook offers an accessible overview of a century of planning theory, bringing a critical perspective rooted in contemporary research that will appeal to lecturers and to their students. Organised thematically, with a focus on institutional and justice issues, this book offers a well-grounded alternative to existing traditional overviews of planning theories by situating planning as a governance and regulatory practice. An essential text for researchers and students, it also offers an innovative framework for addressing current and future issues in urban and regional planning.
1. Introduction: Spatial planning at the intersection among complexity,
institutions, and justice.-
2. What is planning theory and why is it
important?.-
3. Two orthodox ideas of planning: Planning as teleocratic
intervention and planning as a rational decision method.-
4. The role of
planning and the role of planners: Political dimensions, ethical principles,
communicative interaction.-
5. Distinguishing planning from the plan? On
rule-making and infrastructure provision.-
6. The just city: Institutional
and spatial justice, social and distributive justice, concepts and
conceptions of justice.-
7. On property: Basic rights and contingent titles.-
8. Conclusions. Enduring and emerging challenges in planning
9. Annex I.
Rethinking public and private property: Are the commons an alternative
path?.-
10. Annex II. Informality and the dynamics of unauthorised settlement.
Stefano Moroni is Professor of Planning at Milan Polytechnic University, Italy. He has extensive experience researching and teaching in the areas of planning theory, design and policy. He has been a member of the editorial board of the international scientific journal Planning Theory since the 1990s.
