Maia, CatarinaSá Marques, Teresa2023-06-072023-06-072019978-88-99243-93-7https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14235/236As Patsy Healey (1997) argues, the growing interest in public participation and the rise in more collaborative governance processes in spatial planning since the 1960s is evidence of the efforts made to overcome the weakness of the representative model, as well as foster communication among multiple stakeholders, so as to respond to the growing expectations and needs of citizens. Faced with less direct intervention in society and the economy by the State, building a more participatory democracy that coexists and enriches representative democracy is crucial. In Portugal, public planning policies are relatively recent. The guidelines and strategic options for territorial development are outlined in the National Programme for Spatial Planning Policies (PNPOT). Recently (2017-2018), the PNPOT was reformulated, with the intention of defining the spatial planning and development strategy and designing the new action programme for Horizon 2030. The proposal was open to a period of public discussion and was then submitted to the Portuguese parliament for possible approval. This study intends to explain the levels of governance and collaboration in the development of this national programme.encollaborative planningspatial planningpublic policiesPNPOTArticle499-513