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Transactions of the Association of European Schools of Planning is an international peer-reviewed open-access journal, produced and owned by AESOP, Association of European Schools of Planning. The journal aims at promoting excellence in planning education and research, a key goal for AESOP. It supports and disseminates scholarly work of the highest quality, covering the whole spectrum of the planning discipline, including, but not limited to, that produced by AESOP members or participants in AESOP events and activities. By expanding the already rich opportunities for networking and scholarly dialogue that AESOP offers via annual congresses, thematic group activities, and specialist meetings, Transactions serves as a platform for the international planning community to share research, innovative practices, and provocative thoughts among peers.
Transactions publishes both contributions arising from different AESOP events and activities and open submissions from all scholars who would like to share their research in the planning discipline. We welcome unsolicited contributions which present the findings of original research in planning and related fields of academic enquiry. We also welcome ‘think pieces’ and policy focussed articles that address diverse contemporary themes in planning and sustainable urban and regional development. Invited papers by members of AESOP are featured in each issue to help stimulate discussions on education and research agenda as well as to contribute to the dissemination of planning research and the AESOP community’s ongoing debates and efforts in promoting excellence in planning. Articles developed from AESOP congress papers, from AESOP prizes, such as Best Congress Paper Prize winners and nominees, Excellence in Teaching Prize winners, and from AESOP Thematic Group conferences, seminars and workshops are also most welcome in the journal.
Transactions publishes both contributions arising from different AESOP events and activities and open submissions from all scholars who would like to share their research in the planning discipline. We welcome unsolicited contributions which present the findings of original research in planning and related fields of academic enquiry. We also welcome ‘think pieces’ and policy focussed articles that address diverse contemporary themes in planning and sustainable urban and regional development. Invited papers by members of AESOP are featured in each issue to help stimulate discussions on education and research agenda as well as to contribute to the dissemination of planning research and the AESOP community’s ongoing debates and efforts in promoting excellence in planning. Articles developed from AESOP congress papers, from AESOP prizes, such as Best Congress Paper Prize winners and nominees, Excellence in Teaching Prize winners, and from AESOP Thematic Group conferences, seminars and workshops are also most welcome in the journal.
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Item Open Access Editorial - Volume 1 / Issue 1 / (2017)(AESOP, 2017) Babalık-Sutcliffe, Ela; Frank, Andrea; Karadimitriou, Nikos; Sykes, OlivierIt is with great pleasure and excitement that we introduce this inaugural issue of Transactions of the Association of European Schools of Planning. The journal is a new venture of AESOP and aims to provide a platform for the planning community to share research, innovative practices, and provocative thoughts among peers. It expands the already rich opportunities for networking and scholarly dialogue that AESOP offers via annual congresses, Thematic Group activities, specialist meetings such as the Heads of Schools workshops, and summer schools. Transactions seeks to incorporate the spirit that guided AESOP from its beginning – to be inclusive, openminded, and to embrace the diversity of national cultures and milieus of planning and planners represented in Europe and beyond. The journal follows a genuine open access publishing model: it is free of charge to submit a paper for a doubleblind peer review, and accepted papers are accessible online, to everyone, for free. AESOP covers the relevant editorial and publishing costs. This inaugural issue contains an essay from Rachelle Alterman, as well as five contributions on a wide range of topics. All the papers published in this issue had initially been nominated for the Best Congress Paper award by the AESOP Congress track chairs in 2014 and 2015. We would like to offer our sincere thanks to Professor Alterman for her introductory essay, to Professor Anna Geppert, the President of AESOP, for her Introduction, and the authors who contributed a paper to this issue for their willingness to participate in this endeavour and for their patience as the initiative has taken shape.Item Open Access Global student mobilities and the making of planning cultures: A conceptualisation based on the case of Bangladesh(AESOP, 2017) Hackenbroch, KirstenGlobal student mobilities have led to different perspectives on urbanity and planning culture travelling at high speed around the globe. During experiences of mobility what is conceptualised as ‘urban’ changes, bringing with it alterations in discourses on planning practices and planning cultures. Such student mobilities and their shaping of local urban imaginations, as well as the effects of returnees entering local job markets, have not specifically been addressed in urban studies. This paper aims to analyse how the mobilities of students – and thus of knowledge – shape persistent or newly emerging urbanisms, planning practices and cultures. Conceptually, the paper elaborates how the production of urban spaces has to be understood in a context of the global mobilities of knowledge and ever-shifting local planning cultures. In the empirical analysis, the paper draws on qualitative interviews conducted with planning professionals in Dhaka on the (global) education and career trajectories of urban planners, and the dynamics of local planning cultures and practices.Item Open Access Challenges and obstacles in the production of cross-border territorial strategies: The example of the greater region(AESOP, 2017) Decoville, Antoine; Durand, FrédéricCross-border strategies have been flourishing over the last few decades in Europe, mostly in a favourable context where European funding is available and legal instruments are well-developed. However, one may wonder which objectives are really targeted within this very broad and imprecise notion of cross-border strategy. The purpose of this paper is, first, to provide a theoretical framework in order to better understand the different meanings of the notion of cross-border integration and to provide a more critical perspective on its effects. Secondly, it analyses the policy content of the cross-border territorial strategy developed within the Greater Region before, in the final section, pointing out the difficulties faced by policy-makers during its elaboration. This final section is based on the insights brought both by the regional stakeholders interviewed and by our expertise as moderators and scientific advisors within the working group in charge of the realisation of the cross-border territorial strategy. The main finding of our analysis is that the consensus that has been reached by all the stakeholders is the “smallest common denominator”; that is to say, the least constraining.Item Open Access Limits of Localism: Four dimensions of power(AESOP, 2017) Madanipoura, AliA trend in the planning discourse tends to portray the local in a positive light. This paper critically examines localism and regionalism, from a theoretical point of view, to find out whether this positive outlook may be maintained. First the ontology of the local is examined, with its substantive, relational and experiential aspects. As a complex, multi-dimensional process, localism is then analysed at the intersection of four dimensions of power: territorial, representational, institutional, and functional. Boundaries are drawn, representations created, relations within and beyond the locality arranged, and functions allocated. The analysis shows a tendency to essentialise the local as a finished, circumscribed, commodified product, at odds with its multiplicity, diversity, inequality, porous boundaries and relational reality. There is also a gap between the definitions and functions allocated to the local in a hierarchical division of labour, relations with intra- and extra-local political and economic forces, and the mythological narratives of autonomy.Item Open Access EU governance and EU cohesion policy: Reflexive adaptation or inconsistent coordination?(AESOP, 2017) Telle, StefanThe paper discusses the co-evolution of the EU mode of governance and the objectives of European Union cohesion policy. As EU integration proceeds, collective decision-making in an increasingly diverse political arena has become a central concern for research on EU governance. The literature on experimentalist governance suggests consensus-seeking deliberation and policy-experimentation as two key mechanisms to reduce the trade-off between overall policy responsiveness and democratic legitimacy. However, this paper argues that the inconsistencies which result from making cohesion policy deliver the Lisbon Agenda and EU 2020 objectives growth are a characteristic of meta-governance rather than of reflexive adaptation. These findings emerge from an analysis of the cohesion policy programming periods since 1988 and the parallel developments in European Union governance.Item Open Access Co-production of knowledge: A conceptual approach for integrative knowledge management in planning(AESOP, 2017) Kaiser, David Brian; Gaasch, Nadin; Weith, ThomasSustainable land use needs a manageable nexus of knowledge from planning practice, policy makers, the private economy, and civic society, as well as from scientific research. This is mutually dependent on the communicative and collaborative turn in spatial planning as well as by transdisciplinary research approaches. This paper offers an approach how to organise knowledge management and co-production of knowledge in the context of complex land use decisions. Therefore, a prototype of an internet-based knowledge platform is introduced based on a theoretical reflection of concepts for integrated information and knowledge management, as well as on practical experiences derived from a German case study. We conclude that sustainable land use requires Planning Support Systems (PSS) that combine transdisciplinary perspectives in order to co-produce robust knowledge. This also implies a transdisciplinary design of PSS. Challenges of implementation are discussed and further research is specified.Item Open Access Introduction to Volume 1 / Issue 1 / June 2017(AESOP, 2017) Geppert, AnnaI am very pleased to introduce a new journal, Transactions of the Association of European Schools of Planning. A first question may arise to the reader: is there a need for another planning journal? Indeed, although the planning discipline developed in the twentieth century, it remains rather young, and today there is a number of very good journals. However, after vivid discussions, AESOP has come to the conclusion that the project of Transactions, developed with a remarkable dedication by Ela Babalık-Sutcliffe, Andrea Frank, Nikos Karadimitriou and Olivier Sykes, is to provide our community with something complementary to existing journals: unique and precious.Item Open Access From a minor to a major profession: Can planning and planning theory meet the challenges of globalisation?(AESOP, 2017) Alterman, RachelleThe years 2016–2017 have opened up a dream-world set of opportunities for the planning profession. To what extent are planning education and the global planning profession intrinsically ready to take up these opportunities, and are there prices to be paid?Item Open Access Comparative planning and housing studies beyond taxonomy: A genealogy of the special programme for rehousing (Portugal)(AESOP, 2018) Tulumello, Simone; Ferreira, Ana Catarina; Colombo, Alessandro; Di Giovanni, Caterina Francesca; Allegra, MarcoRecent European comparative studies in the fields of housing policy and spatial planning have been dominated by taxonomical and linear approaches, and by normative calls for convergence toward systems considered more ‘mature’ or ‘advanced’. In this article, we adopt a genealogical perspective and consider those cultures that are central to the shaping of policy. We set out a long-term exploration of the intersection between spatial planning and housing policy in Portugal and focus on the Special Programme for Rehousing (Programa Especial de Realojamento, PER), a programme that has had changing roles (from a financial instrument to a core component of policies of urban regeneration) in connection with political and planning cultures changing in time and space. In this way, we provide evidence of the limited capacity of taxonomic and linear approaches to describe planning and housing systems undergoing processes of change and, conversely, show the potential of genealogical research.Item Open Access There is more to it than meets the eye: Strategic design in the context of rural decline(AESOP, 2018) Tietjen, Anne; Jørgensen, GertrudBased on a Danish case, this paper investigates how strategic urban and landscape design can contribute to positive developments in rural areas that are challenged by population decline. From 2007–2012, the municipality of Bornholm conducted a strategic planning process, which aimed to enhance quality of life by strengthening place-based qualities and potential through local physical projects. Guided by actor-network theory (ANT) we analyse the socio-material effects of the new assemblages of people and things around the design interventions that were made. We find that strategic spatial projects can contribute considerably to quality of life in declining rural areas. From a wider strategic perspective, they can also define new spatial development perspectives rooted in place-based resources and potential. Methodologically, ANT offers a pertinent framework for studying the long-term performance of strategic spatial projects and how design actions can continue to gather new actors, spark new initiatives and, thereby, fuel repercussive effects.Item Open Access Tourism identity in social media: The case of Suzhu, a Chinese historic city(AESOP, 2018) Kim, Joon Sik; Wang, Yi-WenIn the context of tourism planning and promotion, there is wide acknowledgement that conceptualisations of tourism identity cannot be grounded merely in physical place, but should also encompass a wide range of factors including, for instance, cultural relations, tourist activities, and social networking. There are opportunities in late modern society for relating the identity of a city’s tourism with digitally-presented tourists’ perceptions and activities through social media studies. This research explores multiple research approaches to delineate the digital identity of Suzhou’s tourist destinations, as presented in online user-generated contents. It is hoped that this social media study can provide supplementary information for tourism bureaus and agencies to make informed judgements on effecting pertinent improvements to optimise existing tourism resources and create more enticing environments for tourists. The research follows a case study approach and conducts an empirical study on Suzhou, a Chinese historic city. The analysis of the results show that the social media study is potentially useful in identifying the key characteristics of particular tourist destinations from visitors’ perspectives that may also be helpful for the evaluation of tourists’ experiences.Item Open Access Mind the gap: Spatial planning systems in the western Balkan region(AESOP, 2018) Berisha, Erbin; Čolić, Nataša; Cotella, Giancarlo; Nedović-Budić, ZoricaStarting in the 1990s, an increasing number of studies and reports have focused on examining the nature and characteristics of spatial planning in Europe. The geographical coverage of these comparative analyses broadened over time, paralleling the progression of EU integration. However, the Western Balkan countries were only vaguely mentioned within such studies, mostly due to their fragmentation and geopolitical instability. This paper analyses and compares spatial planning systems in the Western Balkan Region since the 1990s. More specifically, it presents an overview of the geographical and socio-economic situation, explores administrative and legal frameworks for spatial planning, analyses spatial planning instruments produced at each territorial level, and addresses future challenges. Through so doing this paper exposes the complexity of the subject and sets a base for further research.Item Open Access Sifting through transition: Revisiting ‘rites of passage"(AESOP, 2018) Salet, WillemPlanning research frequently deals with issues of transition. Transition is defined here broadly as the change of social and spatial state from the one position into another. In planning theory and urban studies, there are many attempts to conceptualise such processes of change (material theories, evolutionary approaches, pragmatic perspectives, and so on). This paper traces some classic sources of functional anthropology and cultural sociology, focusing particularly on the meaning of the ‘rite of passage’. This line of reasoning contemplates transition as a pattern of cultural change of social order, and deals both with the structural and the process oriented aspects of transition. The paper builds upon the pivotal work of the French anthropologist Arnold van Gennep and the further explorations of Victor Turner as well as present-day interpretations.Item Open Access Editorial - Volume 2 / Issue 1 / (2018)(AESOP, 2018) Babalık-Sutcliffe, Ela; Frank, Andrea; Karadimitriou, Nikos; Sykes, OlivierWe are pleased to present the second issue of Transactions of the Association of the European Schools of Planning, the open-access, double-blind peer-reviewed journal of AESOP. In keeping with the journal’s aim, this issue brings together a variety of reflective and research papers, associated with AESOP events and activities.Item Open Access Enhancing internationalisation through inter-institutional collaboration: Innovative practices in planning education(AESOP, 2019) Frank, Andrea I.Although internationalisation has been identified as a key transformative factor of higher education at the beginning of the 21st century and is firmly embedded in most institutional missions, there is growing concern amongst educators that internationalisation is being devalued and that the progress of its implementation has stalled. One particularly worrying aspect is a rather limited, predominantly instrumental implementation of internationalisation by institutions subsumed by neoliberal ideologies, economics and rankings, which prioritises international student recruitment over enhancing intercultural understanding, curricula and students’ personal development. Responding to calls to re-orient institutional missions, this reflective essay seeks to stimulate a discussion of how aspirations of socially responsible internationalisation (internationalism) and learning for global citizenship may be reclaimed. Drawing on selected cases from the field of spatial planning, the author suggests that interinstitutional collaboration and partnerships could be a valid means to support (explicitly or implicitly) socially responsible internationalisation while also covering institutional performance targets. Cases are interrogated for their rationale (aims, institutional arrangements, focus) to gain an understanding of how they address various aspects of internationalisation and to draw lessons for wider adoption.Item Open Access Mapping San Siro lab: Experimenting grounded, interactive and mutual learning for inclusive cities(AESOP, 2019) Cognetti, Francesca; Castelnuovo, IdaThe paper proposes a reflection on the Mapping San Siro experience, a five-year action learning project, promoted by the Department of Architecture and Urban Studies in collaboration with Polisocial, the public engagement program of Politecnico di Milano. The project is currently ongoing in one of the largest public estates in Milan, known as San Siro. It aims at experimenting a pedagogical environment based on grounded, interactive, action-oriented and hybrid learning, reflecting how new approaches can enrich the experience of educational practices for the inclusive city. The paper addresses a series of issues, which emerge from this experience, reflecting on situated learning, the co-production of knowledge with community partners, and an action-oriented teaching practice. In this paper, a reflection on the pedagogical and social outcomes of the experience is also proposed.Item Open Access Practical plans: Refugees, spatial design, and a workshop of planning(AESOP, 2019) Cremaschi, MarcoMigration generates both challenges and opportunities. The magnitude of flows and effects on local resources are rarely equally distributed, indeed, the demographic size and economic strength of arrival cities or regions consistently affect outcomes. The nature of these challenges and opportunities is, therefore, extremely varied. These elements have already structured a network of places, refugee-cities, integration hubs, and transit points that play different roles in the increasing process of human mobility. The paper discusses the role of planners in dealing with refugee crises starting from the experience of a university workshop. This allows for a plea in favour of a different approach to planning, one that insists on practice, spatial strategies, and implementation. The paper also illustrates a different teaching approach that takes into account the need to integrate different forms of knowledge and disciplinary perspectives.Item Open Access Cultural enthusiasts, civil society and the strategies of heritage-making in late Russian empire(AESOP, 2019) Kharkina, AnnaCultural heritage preservation became one of the key topics of public discussion in the Late Russian Empire. These discussions led to the establishment of several initiatives for protecting Russian cultural heritage. This article demonstrates that such initiatives developed a variety of different strategies for heritage-making. Examples from the Society of the Protection and Preservation of the Monuments of Art and Antiquity in Russia and the Society of the Revival of Artistic Rus’ show that several strategies of heritage-making focusing on cultural heritage preservation were developed simultaneously by different civil groups and helped cultivate the interest of the state authority in the subject, an interest which later became institutionalised under the Soviet regime.Item Open Access Let us teach for real! : A plea for traditional teaching(AESOP, 2019) Geppert, AnnaBefore we even noticed, electronic devices and the internet have invaded our lives and our universities. Far from being just an instrument, they change the way we teach, whether we want it or not. Unfortunately, instead of helping, they carry negative effects, well documented by research in psychology, psychiatry and neuroimaging over the last decade. They affect our attention, our memory, and our social skills. Without even being aware of it, we are playing the Sorcerer’s Apprentice. Since 2011, the author has banned the digital and reinvigorated traditional teaching methods: a demanding, yet hugely rewarding experience. The present paper is a vibrant plea by a scholar to fellow scholars: let us get rid of the virtual! Let us teach for real!Item Open Access Editorial - Volume 3 / Issue 1 / (2019)(AESOP, 2019) Babalık-Sutcliffe, Ela; Frank, Andrea; Karadimitriou, Nikos; Sykes, OlivierWe are pleased to present the third issue of Transactions of the Association of the European Schools of Planning, the open-access, double-blind peer-reviewed journal of AESOP. The purpose of AESOP is promoting within Europe the development of teaching and research in the field of planning. Since its foundation it has always sought to foster the development of planning education, with the original AESOP Charter signed in Dortmund in 1987 placing a particular emphasis on this dimension of planning school activity. Reflecting this, the focus of the present issue of Transactions is on new experiences and issues in planning education. The papers presented here address a range of contemporary issues in the design and delivery of planning education in Europe and other parts of the globe. The focus of the contributions is diverse, ranging from wider structural and contextual issues such as the internationalisation of higher education, through to papers which report and reflect on, experiences of teaching in different institutions and contexts, and using different modes of delivery.