Hidden positivities within the urban planning education in the neoliberal era: the case of Middle East Technical University Department of City and Regional Planning
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Date
2016
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AESOP
Abstract
The global financial crisis that has initiated in 2008 can be seen as an aftershock of the global restructuring of the neoliberal policies that started at the beginning of 1980s. Since that time policies of deregulation, decentralisation and privatisation have been adapted to different contexts and implemented at various degrees at various localities. But their essence (maximisation of economic gains through liberalisation of markets) had never changed. This high emphasis on liberated markets not only produced financial problems like credit crunch and chronic poverty but also caused social and cultural problems that range from loss of public space to social consumerism. As cities are considered to be the concretisation grounds of neoliberal policies, it became rather easy to create relationship between neoliberalism and cities. But the effect of neoliberalism on planning education is hardly discussed within the literature. Throughout this work, the author would like to follow a three level deductive approach to the case of education in neoliberal era. At the first level the author will develop a historical look to the transformations of universities by giving special emphasis on the neoliberal era. At the second level, the focus will be given on urban planning education and changing priorities within planning programs will be investigated. At the third and last level the author would like to concentrate on a peculiar cases of Turkey and on the Middle East Technical University Department of City and Regional Planning (METU/CRP). After describing the role of urban planning within the political economy of Turkey, a critical look will be provided to METU/CRP’s curriculum and its influence on the students.
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Proceedings of the IV World Planning Schools Congress, July 3-8th, 2016 : Global crisis, planning and challenges to spatial justice in the north and in the south
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