Land Policies in Europe
Challenges of land policy
Land is a scarce resource. Not only in many large German cities but across the country there is a great demand for affordable housing in inner cities and its urban fringes. Also in neighbouring countries, land is under pressure. In most major cities and even in rural areas, land prices are currently rising in such a way that it is becoming increasingly difficult to finance residential and commercial areas needs.
At the same time, urban densification and land thrift are policy goals in Germany and in many of its neighbouring countries. The demand for urban growth nurtured by interests of municipalities and housing seekers on the one hand, and environmental concerns for the preservation of landscapes on the other hand, are thus in conflict.
In this conflict, it becomes clear that the provision of building land is not only an administrative, but above all a land policy issue. In the current debate on building land provision, this political question is often pushed into the background by the discussion about the effectiveness of spatial planning instruments or the acceleration of building site planning procedures.
The responsible management of the resource land is thereby one of the core competencies and tasks of spatial planning. Spatial planning therefore needs to face the political challenges of dealing with land to work a sustainable use of scarce land. This requires a broad debate on instruments of land policy and its strategic use. This debate needs to also reflect notions of effectiveness, efficiency, justice and legitimacy. The challenges ahead and the strategic use of instruments go beyond the municipal level and require a regional cityscape perspective. Due to the great challenges but also the international experience, this debate needs to include expertise from neighbouring countries.
An international working group
The international working group „German Land Policy Revisited – Reflections and Lessons from Abroad” (short: LAND POLICIES IN EUROPE) will inspirit the necessary debate in Germany with references to other European countries. International renowned experts on the area of land policy and spatial planning will gather and discuss the pressing issues (not only) on German land policy. Core issues will be how instruments of land policy are used and can be used strategically to govern the scarce resource of land effectively, efficiently, just, and in a legitimized way to address the planning challenges of our time.
International Academic Association on Planning, Law, and Property Rights Conference 2025
SAVE THE DATE: The International Academic Association on Planning, Law, and Property Rights (PLPR) will hold its 19th annual conference between 3–7 March 2025 in Cardiff, UK.
CALL FOR ABSTRACTS is open: A submission link is available on the conference website. The call for abstracts will close on Monday, 30 September 2024.
The organising committee welcomes any paper abstracts related to the key themes of PLPR: planning, law, and property rights. In addition, PLPR2025 has received several proposals for special sessions on a variety of interesting and timely topics. When submitting your abstract, you have the option to select a specific special session or submit it as a general paper, not affiliated with any particular session. We encourage participants to review the descriptions of the special sessions provided to determine if their submissions align with any of these topics.
Shaping the debate on land policies in Europe
Progress of the ARL International Working Group on Land Policies in Europe
The most recent attempt of the German legislator to promote the “building-turbo” by adding provisions in article 246 of the German Planning code illustrate the societal urgency of land policy. If this legislation succeeds, the provision of land for housing will be at the same level with flood recovery, the Corona pandemic or refugee accommodations. In other words, challenges of land policy remain urgent in planning policy and academia.
The ARL international working group (IAK) on land policies in Europe shapes an international debate on land policies to enable structured reflection and mutual learning across national boundaries. The IAK shapes the debate with different means and channels:
Out now: RuR Special Issue on Innovative Land Policies in Europe
The ARL international working group „German Land Policy Revisited – Reflections and Lessons from Abroad” (short: LAND POLICIES IN EUROPE) has published a special issue in “Raumforschung und Raumordnung | Spatial Research and Planning” (RuR) which inspirits the necessary debate in Germany with references to other European countries.
International renowned experts on the area of land policy and spatial planning focus on the pressing issues (not only) on German land policy.
All articles are Open Access available.
RuR Vol. 81 No. 6 (2023)
17th Annual PLPR Conference - save the date & submission deadline for PLPR 2023
Annual Conference of the International Academic Association on Planning, Law, and Property Rights (PLPR 2023)
VENUE: Hosted by the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI, USA
TIME: 2 - 5. May 2023, PhD workshop on 1 May 2023
Conference presentations will be selected through a regular academic peer-review process. Abstract submissions to present at the conference, and applications for the Ph.D. student workshop, are now welcome. Please see the conference website for instructions on the abstract submission process, along with other conference details currently available: Protected link.
The deadline
An analytical framework for comparing land policies in Europe
The ARL International Working Group on Land Policies in Europe prepares two significant milestones. Most recently, the IAK met in Dortmund. In August 2022, the group of experts (from 11 European countries) gathered to prepare the IAK’s next outcomes. In particular, the working group is currently preparing the two most important outputs: First, a compilation of recent land policy innovations across planning laws in different European countries is being prepared in form of a special issue with the journal “Raumforschung und Raumordnung | Spatial Research and Planning” (RuR).
Furthermore, a second milestone is being prepared. The group intends to develop a book project that presents land policies in Europe in a comprehensible way. The book should cover the current developments and thus enable experts to get valuable insights. The group aims to prepare the book so that it can be read and understood by policy-makers and planning students across the continent.
