Planning Concepts and Processes

Transformation processes – no matter whether they were triggered in the demographic, economic, social, ecological, political or fiscal dimension – are the drivers of spatial change. Active engagement with processes of change through targeted interventions to manage and control spatial development is the responsibility of spatial planning – understood here as the sum of comprehensive spatial planning which aims to balance different spatial needs and specialised sectoral planning with its spatial impacts. Comprehensive spatial planning – spatial planning on the federal, state and regional levels and urban development planning – undertakes an investigative, assessing, future-oriented and coordinating task. Again as a result of processes of social change, spatial planning no longer acts only in a governmental manner but increasingly through the involvement of private and economic stakeholders (governance). Against this background of numerous processes of change, the issue is increasingly how planning processes can and should be designed in the future and, in particular, how processes of participation should be organised.

Understanding of the mechanisms by which people live with one another in society and familiarity with the legal matters and instruments relevant for conducting planning processes are fundamental preconditions for the greatest possible all-round acceptance of planning projects and legally watertight planning activities. Knowledge about and handling of the various provisions and instruments of planning and building law and environment legislation, including for example regulations relating to public roads and energy, are thus among the most important foundations of spatial planning. This is underlined by the trend of juridification, which is increasingly evident on the European level (associated with greater cohesion in Europe) and can be seen in various spheres of society, particularly in the methods, procedures and instruments of spatial planning.

Contact

Dr.-Ing. Evelyn Gustedt
Phone +49 511 34842-23
Fax +49 511 34842-41
gustedt@arl-net.de

Dr. Andreas Stefansky
Phone +49 511 34842-43
Fax +49 511 34842-41
stefansky@arl-net.de