a bibliographical essay

8/11/2019 A Bibliographical Essay

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The Uses of Planning Theory:

A Bibliographic Essay

John Friedmann

Preface

Studying planning at the University of Chicago in the early 50s, I was privileged

to be a student of Edward C. Banfield who offered the first planning theory

seinar ever to be held anywhere. !ong the assigned readings which

influenced e the ost was "arl #annhei$s Man and Society in an Age of

Reconstruction (1949; orig. 1940) a translation of which had %ust appeared, and

&erbert !. Sion$sAdministratie !ehaior (19"#$ orig. 194%). #annhei was a

&ungarian sociologist who had fled to the United "ingdo %ust before the war

and was best 'nown for his wor' on the sociology of 'nowledge( Sion, an

!erican student of public adinistration would receive the )obel *ri+e for his

wor' on artificial intelligence any years later. hile #annhei was searching

for a deocratic alternative to the twin evils of counis and fascis, Sion

e-plored the possibilities of rational decision a'ing in the conte-t of !erican

bureaucracy. Banfield hiself was particularly fascinated by Sion and

undertoo' his own research into the field of housing policy in Chicago #eyerson

and Banfield, /551. &is conclusion that planning for public housing in the indy

City was all about politics, and that the planners$ purported rationalis was little

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ore than an ideological so'e screen, led hi eventually to the study of urban

politics and a professorship at &arvard. But I was bitten by the bug of 2planning

theory3 which neither then nor now can be precisely defined and encopasses

a vast terrain1 and have been engaged in thin'ing about planning ever since.

I ention this personal story because, since those early and tentative

beginnings, planning theory has becoe a respectable sub%ect with a %ournal

e-clusively devoted to the topic and courses on the history and theory of

planning offered in ost !erican planning schools, often as an introductory

sub%ect. In fact, coverage of planning theory is now andated for accreditation

purposes. 4espite this apparent 2success,3 s'eptical voices still disiss its

usefulness for practice. !s Sanyal has argued$ based on a survey of planning

practitioners, not one of the had found planning theory, or indeed any theory,

useful as they grappled with conflicting interests Sanyal 001. 6hey learned by

doing, Sanyal said, not fro theories. 6he present essay is y attept to argue

otherwise, stressing several 2uses3 of planning theory as I see the. I a fairly

certain that if they were pressed for an answer now, ost practitioners would

continue to validate Sanyal$s conclusion. But I believe that any intellectual

discipline has its particular role to play in the discourse about planning and

indeed in acadeic discourse generally, and that this discourse cannot but affect

the thousands of planning students who are pu++led by the 7uestion of 2what is

planning.3 8ver the years our answers to this e-istential 7uestion have changed,

and our writings on planning theory have helped to shape the inds of our

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students as they eerged into their own practices. In this way, and for the ost

part unbe'nown to theselves, they have contributed to the generational drift in

our collective understanding of planning practice. e have distanced ourselves

fro a practice conceived as a for of rational decision9a'ing, the doinant

odel in the iediate post9war era, to our current understanding that planning

is inevitably ebedded in politics, reflecting and adapted to what for want of a

better ter we call the spirit of the ties.

6he writings that I will cite in this essay obviously reflect y own biases, and it

would be false odesty to deny that I have contributed to this discourse for ore

than 50 years and a perhaps responsible for soe of the shifts that have

occurred :riedann 00, ch. ;1. 8thers ay well disagree with what I call the

three central 2tas's3 of planning theory, or how the writers who contributed to this

discourse actually understood what they were doing. !nd so, because I value

discussion, I invite responses to the present version of what I perceive to be the

case.

!n essay such as this is necessarily written in a style that is ore or less

ipersonal. I will therefore inter%ect ore personal coents fro tie to tie

such as this *reface. 6he reader will recogni+e the by the italic script.

Introduction

'anning theory is ecoming an increasingy goa discourse. *he e+onymous

,ourna *lanning 6heory-as founded y uigi Ma//a of the niersity of Miano


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in the 1990s. Seera oumes of Ango2American +anning theorists (Forester$

Friedmann$ 3eaey$ and Sandercoc among others) hae een transated into

5taian and +uished y 6edao under the genera editorshi+ of 6ino !orri of the

*echnica niersity of !ari. 5n the 7$ 'atsy 3eaey$ -ith the strong su++ort of

the Roya *o-n 'anning 5nstitute$ founded the ,ourna *lanning 6heory and

*ractice-hich in &008 is ceerating its tenth anniersary. 5n ermany$ 7aus

See at the niersity of Aachen has een a ma,or contriutor to +anning

theoretica discourse. 5ndiidua contriutions hae come from 5srae$ !ra/i$

:or-ay$ 6enmar$ !egium$ and reece. And as recent issues of the China City

*lanning


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endeaor. 5 refer to them as >tass$@ -hich is to say that they are ma,or concerns$

-hether eB+icit or im+icit$ of those +artici+ating in the discourse.

*he first tas is to eoe a dee+y considered humanist +hioso+hy for +anning

and to trace its im+ications for +ractice. *his is thephilosophical tas of +anning

theory. *he second tas is to he+ ada+t +anning +ractices to their rea2-ord

constraints -ith regard to scae$ com+eBity$ and time. difference@ maes. 5 ca this the tas of adaptation. *he third

tas is to transate conce+ts and no-edges generated in other fieds into our

o-n domain$ and to render them accessie and usefu for +anning and its

+ractices. 5 ca this the tas of translation.5n the remainder of this essay$ 5 -i

eaorate on each of these tass y dra-ing on s+ecific eBam+es from the

iterature.

I Evolving a humanist philosophy for planning and its practices

It doesn$t see so very long ago that planning was perceived to be a value9free

activity guided by professional if not scientific standards. *lanners, it was argued,

are guardians of the public interest. 6oday, it would be difficult to aintain this

position=or is it> In ?apan, for instance, planning is still largely perceived as a

technocratic activity e-ercised by 6o'yo9based bureaucrats Sorensen 001,

and versions of this attitude are widely held throughout East !sia.!nd although

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)orth !erican planners no longer ebrace technocratic hubris, architects and

soe urban designers by and large still do, and econoists of the neo9classical

variety regard their pronounceents as scientifically based advice to policy9

a'ers who can then e-ercise their values in whatever way they choose. 6hey

believe in the a-i of spea'ing truth to power. In their understanding, facts and

values don$t i-( they are derived fro different logics.

!nd yet, as planners, we don$t have a well thought9out philosophical position

beyond the usual platitudes of 2participation.3 Soe planners today thin' of their

priary role as that of facilitating public discussion or ediating disputes. hile

they ay favor a different outcoe, their professional s'ill is priarily to assist in

2getting to yes3 aong sta'eholders, in arriving at an actionable consensus,

whatever that ay turn out to be. 6his facilitative approach is a considerable

distance fro an understanding of a planning practice ebedded in politics.

So the 7uestion for us is this@ can planners evolve a value9based philosophy as a

foundation for their own practices in the world> #y personal view is that this is

perhaps the a%or challenge before us in a world that, despite protestations to

the contrary, is increasingly aterialist, individualist, and largely indifferent to

huans$ ipacts on the natural environent. In the absence of a huan9

centered philosophy or soe other defensible construct, we will erely drift with

the ainstrea, helping to build cities that are neither supportive of life nor

ecologically sustainable.

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A

*hat +anning is not a aue2free actiity has een -idey acno-edged for some

time$ at east in :orth America$ -here aue2ased +anning is no onger a saient

issue. *he anadian 5nstitute of 'anners$ for eBam+e$ has an 82+oint

>Statement of Caues@ that is meant to sere as a source of ins+iration and

guidance for +rofessiona +anner

(---.ci+icu.caDEngishDmemersD+ractice.htm). Moreoer$ for +rogressie

+anners in the S and anada$ socia ,ustice concerns hae een an im+ortant

focus for decades$ eer since 'au 6aidoff (19#%) made the case for +anners

adocacy of the +oor and hester 3artmans *lanners )etwor' )ewsletterin

19"%$ -hich has no- eoed into the =uartery ,ourna$ *rogressive *lanning

(3artman &00&). E=uay notae is Susan Fainsteins tireess adocacy of socia

,ustice in the city (Fainstein &000; forthcoming). More recenty$ some +anning

schoos (es+eciay in anada)$ such as the Schoo of ommunity and Regiona

'anning at the niersity of !ritish oumia$ hae decared themsees to e

committed to sustainaiity and the democrati/ation of +anning$ thus maing a

s+ecific aue2orientation centra to their mission. And oer the years$ arious

aue caims hae een emraced y oth the +anning academy and many

indiidua +ractitioners$ such as adocacy of the +oor and other marginai/ed

+eo+e$ citi/en +artici+ation$ incusieness$ and the right to housing.

*hese commitments did not$ ho-eer$ sim+y >dro+ from the sy@ ut -ere the

resut of +oitica strugges$ deates$ and dramatic changes in the +eitgeistof our

"
http://www.cip-icu.ca/English/members/practice.htmhttp://www.cip-icu.ca/English/members/practice.htm


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societies. nderying them$ too$ -ere ne- researches$ ne- discourses$ and ne-

common understandings aout the contem+orary -ord. *hese -ritings$

addressed to +anners ut occasionay to a more genera readershi+ as -e$ are

+art and +arce of -hat 5 ca the centra tass of +anning theory. 5f +anning

+ractice is no-$ as 5 -oud argue$ oth societa and +oitica$ and if -e ie$ as -e

are oiged to$ in an increasingy interconnected -ord$ -e hae to thin more

and more dee+y aout the aues that shoud inform our +ractices$ including

how to ove fro values to action. 5n the foo-ing +aragra+hs$ 5 -i gie the

merest hints of the eBtensie -or that ies ahead for us.

5 egin -ith -hat 5 eiee to e our irthright to human fourishing. 5n an essay

on the >good city@$ 5 argued that 2every huan being has the right to the full

developent of their innate intellectual, physical, and spiritual capabilities in the

conte-t of wider counities.35 caed this the right to huan flourishingand

+ro+osed it as the most fundamenta of human rights (Friedmann &00&$ 110). 1

'hioso+hica anthro+oogy teaches us that indiidua human eings cannot e

meaningfuy descried as an astract conce+t such as the utiity2maBimi/ing

>economic man@ of neo2cassica thought -hich$ -hen seriousy a++ied in +oicy

discourse$ can hae icious conse=uences (ar &00&). Rather$ from the

moment of conce+tion unti -e die$ human eings can ony e understood as

muti2dimensiona$ sociay2reated eings$ orpersons-ho$ oer the entire arc of

their ies$ eoe ioogicay$ +sychoogicay and in the socia reations that

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constitute our coectie eBistence. More recenty$ -e hae come to understand

human interde+endence not ony societay ut aso -ith the natura enironment

oth are essentia to our continued sustenance and fourishing (6ay and Farey

&004; ar &00&). *his anthro2ecoogica mode is essentiay one of liits

imited$ that is$ y the re=uirements of ioogica and +sychoogica ife$ cuturay

mediated socia oigations$ the eBtensie +roduction of use aues -ithout -hich

-e -oud not surie and -hich some refer to as the mora economy$ and

natures ca+acity to sustain human ife on earth at sociay acce+tae ees of

iing ('oanyi 19"").

*-o crucia oserations foo- from -oring -ith a mode of imits. *he first is

that it cashes -ith the eief in the +ossiiity of unimited cumuatie gro-th in

materia consum+tion and thus$ +resumay$ of human ha++iness as -e (an

eer increasing >ha++iness?@)$ a eief that has ecome the dominant ideoogy in

+oicy +anning -ord-ide. *he second is that an im+ication of -oring -ith

either or oth modes is ound to ead to contradictionsthat can ony e resoed

either +eacefuy through a +oitica +rocess or$ faiing that$ y de+oying the

+oice +o-ers of the state. An eBam+e is the off2oading of the rising economic

and enironmenta costs of unimited materia gro-th onto the east +o-erfu

sectors of the +o+uation (using the fu +o-ers of the state to enforce this

soution) andDor onto the -eaest countries of the goa community$ many of

them in Africa and the Midde East. 5n other -ords$ increasing domestic and

goa ine=uaities are +arty res+onsie for generating the +resent -ord

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disorderranging from drugs$ +eo+e smugging$ hunger$ and random ioence

against ciiian +o+uations to desertification$ goa -arming$ and the >ong

emergency@ of +ost2+ea oi (7unster &00#). Since ioent soutions may e the

most +roae ut are aso the east desirae$ -e are for a +ractica +ur+oses

eft -ith ony a range of +oitica o+tions.

At a theoretica ee$ these o+tions confront us -ith the chaenge to deise

+oitica systems andDor +rocesses ca+ae of oercoming the inherent

contradictions in +uic +oicy -or. *his ine of argument taes us directy to the

=uestion of democratic theory most of -hich$ at east in recent decades$ has had

the nation state as its focus. 'anners hae made fe- contriutions to democratic

theory as such$ +ossiy ecause our attention is oer-hemingy focused on the

oca.&

*-enty years ago$ in an attem+t to -rite the history of +anning thought$ 5

suggested that John 6e-eys eB+erimenta +ragmatism$ 7ar Mannheims >third

-ay@ of democratic +anning$ 7ar 'o++ers adocacy of an >o+en society@$ and

Roert 6ah and hares indoms +oitica economy offered +anners a ridge

to +oitica theory (Friedmann 198").!ut turning to contem+orary +oitica theory

directy$ +erha+s the most infuentia -or oer the +ast haf century has een

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4iensions of as a form of

goernment in -hich free and e=ua citi/ens (and their re+resentaties) ,ustify

decisions in a +rocess in -hich they gie one another reasons that are mutuay

acce+tae and generay accessie$ -ith the aim of reaching concusions that

are inding in the +resent on a citi/ens ut o+en to chaenge in the future@

(utmann and *hom+son &004).%Cirtuay a the deates that hae s-ired

around this conce+t$ ho-eer$ hae cast their arguments in terms of a nationa

+oity$ and the reeance of +uic >deieration@ as this term is used y +oitica

scientists has found itte resonance among +anners.

Archon Fungs recent -or is an eBce+tion. sing a series of siB case studies

from hicago$ Fung has gien us a detaied oo at deieratie democracy at

-or (Fung &004; see aso Fung$


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community is a famiiar one to +anners$ es+eciay to those -oring in mediation

and negotiation$ such as Judith 5nnes and 6aid !ooher (&00).

5t is John Forester$ ho-eer$ -ho has taen deieratie democracys mora

ision furthest y -oring it into the anguage and +ractice of community +anning

(Forester 1999). 3is eary -ritings focused on the art of istening$ ut in 6he

4eliberative *ractitionerhe de+arted from the rationaist modes of +oitica

scientists and +hioso+hers such as JHrgen 3aermas to confront the dee+

grieances and +assionate commitments +eo+e often ring to +uic

deierations. 5f the +arties to a confict see to reach agreement$ their +ains$

+assions$ and grieances$ he argues$ must first e +uicy acno-edged. Most

im+ortanty for +anning theory$ +erha+s$ is his em+hasis on -hat he cas

transforative learningthat occurs -hen +eo+e honesty confront their emotions

and those of others in the course of taing -ith each other.

entra to Foresters -or is the +rinci+e of diaogue$ -hich the Je-ish

+hioso+her Martin !uer has caed das wischenenschliche,that -hich inds

humans together and$ in a -ider circe of interde+endencies$ ,oins us in oing

attentieness to a iing eings on Earth (!uer 19#%). 5n a oo 5 caed 6he

Dood Society$ 5 eB+ored this +rinci+e in its muti+e forms and amiguities$ and

suggested that human onds can e formed into socia moements (or

tem+orary sodaities) that$ through +ersona engagement and +oitica strugge$

act as the iing germ ce in the mora transformation of human societies

(Friedmann 19"9). *oday$ Forester continues this eB+oration y focusing on

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more stae$ +ace2ound communities in the sma s+aces of the city -hich are

its neighorhoods and other negected$ often inisie s+aces. 5t is interesting to

note ho- des+ite the gigantism of the modern uran$ s+reading as it does oer

thousands of s=uare iometers$ these intimate s+aces of uran ife surie$

forming a ta+estry of socia reations that is dee+y meaningfu for those -eaing

its +atterns. Efforts such as Foresters and others at constructing a mora

foundation for +anning are essentia if -e -ant to further the good and aoid ei$

-hich is the dar side of +anning in the serice of a +o-erfu$ inherenty immora

state (Giftache 1998).

II Adapting planning practices to their real-world constraints: scale

comple!ity and time

6heorists are forever watching the world as it goes through its transforations.

:or soe, this is an e-citing prospect, but planners are not %ournalists who can

dispassionately observe the passing scene. 6hey have to as' theselves@ Diven

the reality of what is happening now, can planning powers intervene to shift the

balance of forces towards goals of social %ustice and inclusion in the ongoing

processes of urban and regional restructuring, and with what tools at hand>

6he si-ty plus years since orld ar II have been oentous ones as world

population increased three9fold, while the ratio of urban dwellers increased by

nearly five ties to reach fifty percent of the total by 00. 6his scale of

deographic growth is without historical precedent, and planners have had to

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wor' with only sidgens of 'nowledge to guide the. Soeone once called it

2planning without facts.3 )one of us could clai to understand what was actually

happening, or where we were headed, if indeed there was a destination. !s a

rule, we spo'e with far greater certainty than was warranted( soe ight even

argue that we were 2whistling in the dar'.3 Still, one had a sense of being close

to the ragged frontlines of history. 6hat at least is what I felt when I wor'ed

successively in Bra+il, ene+uela, Chile, "orea, #o+abi7ue, 6hailand, ?apan,

and latterly in China. But I believe that even bac' hoe in )orth !erica,

planning was often ore a venturing forth into the un'nown terrain of the future

than the precise surgical procedure involved in, say, reoving a ruptured

appendi-.

I return then to the 7uestion of liits, this tie the liits of 'nowledge about a

world that despite incredible scientific achieveents in soe reals leaves

any of us perple-ed. e can iagine soething better than what we see

around us, but such visions are fugitive, and our actions, iperfect as they are,

often contribute to the general sense of turbulence rather than bringing us closer

to iaginary futures. Under these circustances, the best we can hope for is to

a'e pragatic responses to eergencies that are already upon us. Dlobal

waring is a telling e-aple.

6his then is the story of how planning theorists have tried to close the feedbac'

loop between observed events on the ground and the teachings of our

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profession. !nd in this, at least, as I will try to show, their efforts have been

partially successful.

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these em+resarios of uran transformation$ e-is Mumford$ though neer a

+anner himsef$ iened +anning to a form of gardeningIa it of +runing here$ a

it of muching there22that$ in rhythm -ith the cyces of nature$ -oud he+ to ring

aout a io2centric uran region (Mumford 198). Enironmentaists today are

rediscoering Mumford$ -hie other oserers$ im+atient -ith contem+orary :e-

Gors snai2+aced +anning +rocess$ cast nostagic ac-ard gances at Roert

Moses and his decisieness$ +oitica acumen$ and aiity to gie sustance to his

ision. So the ,ury on -hat sort of +anning -e shoud hae$ and ho- much

>no-edge@ (and een -hat sortof no-edge) is necessary for good +anning

is$ 5m afraid$ sti out.

*here is aso the =uestion of -hat is meant aoe y a >reiae@ no-edge for

+anning decisions. r do isions suffice? S+eaing +ros+ectiey as +anners

often do$ -hat$ for instance$ is the est route for a ne- transit ine$ and -oud

uiding it e an economicay sound decision? nfortunatey$ =uestions of this

sort are neer +ausiy ans-ered. Engineering criteria can e inoed$ ut in the

end$ -e no- that forecasts of future transit demand are unreiae$ the more so

the onger the time +eriod in ie- (Fy,erg et a. &00; Atshuer and ueroff

&00). Such decisions are utimatey eft to +oiticians$ ureaucrats$ usiness

oies$ uran socia moements$ and the media to resoeIthat is$ to the

+oitica +rocess. 'arentheticay$ it might e noted that oca +oiticians tenure is

rarey ong enough to eB+erience the conse=uences of their choice. Since +uic

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memory is simiary short$ +oitica decisions are fre=uenty irres+onsie$ if not

recess.

5 return then to the =uestion of no-edge for +anning. *hroughout the -ord$

+anning education re=uires at east a first uniersity degree and$ in many

countries$ the e=uiaent of an American masters degree. So one -oud thin

that a high measure of forma no-edge is after a re=uired as a +oint of entry

into the +rofession. com+rehensie@ or >strategic@ +ans for a city or region$ they face the amost

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im+ossie tas of re+resenting the city or region in t-o2dimensiona s+ace at a

scae that can e isuai/ed at a singe gance. Eery ma+ is a mode$ and eery

mode is a radica sim+ificationIan astractionIof reaity.


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ien ho- these circumstances constrain their craft$ is it sur+rising that

munici+a +anners are continuay reising their +ans to ring them u+2to2date$

-hie any s+ecific +ro+osas come ineitay under fire from adersaries oth

inside and outside the goernment? S+eaing generay$ the infuence of this ty+e

of +anning on the sha+ing of uran com+eBes has een minima. 'erha+s it is

for this reason that +anning +ractice in :orth America has increasingy turned

entre+reneuria$ focusing on +ro,ects and +artnershi+ arrangements rather than

com+rehensie +ans$ and -hy theorists such as Forester (1989) and Fy,erg

(1998a) hae strongy argued for a stye of +oiticay say +anning.

For many +anners$ this -as aready cear during the turuent siBties -hen socia

moements fourished. Many American +anning schoos ecame hot s+ots of

socia actiism -hich soon oershado-ed more traditiona +anning concerns$

such as and use. 5n 19%9$ hares indom$ a +oitica economist at Gae$

+uished -hat -as to ecome his most +o+uar ,ourna artice eer (re+rinted

oer 40 timesK)$ +roocatiey entited >*he Science of Mudding *hrough@

(indom 19%9). 5n it$ he argued against >syno+tic@ +anning -hich he dismissed

as a uto+ian endeaor$ +ro+osing instead a >dis,ointed incrementaism@ in -hich

a arge numer of reatiey autonomous ut net-ored actors -oud ad,ust their

o-n short2term +ans$ each according to the continuay changing conditions

confronting them. *his -as the com+etitie maret re2inter+reted for the -ord of

+oicy and +anning. !ut fe- +anners in the academy heeded his ca; most -ere

sti in thra to the idea of com+rehensieness. Et/ionis attem+t to comine

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road isions -ith incrementa ste+s to achiee them$ -hich he caed >miBed

scanning$@ -as simiary un+ersuasie (Et/ioni 19#8). 'anning theorists -ere sti

in thra -ith a mode of ho- to mae decisions rationa.

5n staehoders@

most of -hom came from concerned goernment agencies and the cor+orate

sector$ -ith a ne- >third sector@ emracing cii society at some distance ehind.

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Sef2identified staehoders no- had a egitimate caim to sit at the tae -hen

decisions affecting their interests -ere eing made.8

*he seenties and eighties -ere indeed an era of historica transition -hose

+rofound effects -oud e fet around the goe. MarBists eB+ained -hat -as

ha++ening as a crisis of accumuation$ and some authors een toyed -ith the

amiguous +hrase >ate ca+itaism@ to characteri/e this +eriod (Mande 19"%).


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!uestones 6he Dreat U96urn@ Corporate


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eB+eriment that has ins+ired simiar endeaors throughout !ra/i$ Euro+e$ and

anada$ though none as attention2getting as the origina eB+eriment. As non2

goernmenta organi/ations +roiferated throughout the -ord$ community

em+o-erment -as eing touted as a +anacea for marginai/ed neighorhoods in

the oa South (Friedmann 199a). ii society$ a term -ith a ong historica

+edigree in +oitica +hioso+hy$ had een reinented y the ieration theoogy

moement of the athoic hurch in !ra/i and then in atin America more

generay (ehmann 1990; Escoar and Aare/ 199&). 5nde+endent of its atin

American usage$ it -as aso used to descrie the source of +oitica ieration as

eastern Euro+e shoo off its decades2ong yoe of ommunist rue (ohen and

Arato 199&).


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the century$ mediation had ecome an im+ortant ne- ranch not ony of +anning

ut of ega studies as -e (e!aron &00&). arry Sussind and John Forester

made ey contriutions to this ne- s+eciai/ation$ the first in a series of

+uications cuminating in 6he Consensus Building &andboo'@ !

Coprehensive Duide to su++ressing confict is su++ressing freedom$ ecause the +riiege to

engage in confict is +art of freedom@ (Fy,erg 1998$ &09). *hus he eB+ressed

se+ticism aout the non2+oitici/ed +rocesses of mediation and uiding

consensus.

Mediations not-ithstanding$ and -ith the a++earance of an increasingy oca

and +oiticay actie cii society$ +oitics and therefore confict around aues and

+riorities hae ecome centra to +anning. James 3oston (1999)$ an uran

anthro+oogist -ho has done eBtensie fied -or in !ra/i$ introduced the term

>insurgent citi/enshi+$@ -hich -as suse=uenty ado+ted y Sandercoc -ho

made insurgent +ractices centra to her +ath2reaing -or on accommodating

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difference in the contem+orary metro+ois$ though she -as =uic to +oint out that

>confict@ around differences neednt e ioent. 5n an uran -ord$ she -rote$

insurgencies can resut from >a thousand tiny em+o-erments@ rather than from

reoutionary adentures (Sandercoc 1998$ 1&921%9). ie indom$ she ne-

that ig changes often come from an accumuation of many sma ones. Athough

diaogue and mediation hae their +ace in the +oitica ife of cities$ -here +o-er

differences are great$ and fundamenta -ord ie-s or strongy hed +rinci+es are

at stae$ such as the uniersa right to housing$ mediation cannot e the defaut

+osition. 'oitica strugges are needed.

9

5n concuding this +art of the essay$ 5 -ant to mention a fina +anning inention

-hich o-es as much to theory as to +ractice. 5 hae in mind the ne- interest in

>isioning@ that has emerged in res+onse to the increasingy fragmentary

character of +anning +ractices that are either +ro,ect2focused or tae +ace ony

in isoated oca neighorhoods sated for redeeo+ment. 5n Euro+e$ isioning

eBercises are often referred to as >s+atia strategies@ (3eaey et a. 199";

Arechts &004; 3eaey &00#$ &00"). For 3eaey$ -ho has een a eading oice

eB+ressing this a++roach in +aces such as :orthern 5reand and the Amsterdam

region$ s+atia strategies hae transformatie +otentia. *hey are meant to

enarge the thining of +oicy communities$ to eB+ore ne- o+tions in a

coordinated -ay ut -ithout re=uiring a forma commitment to carry them out. 5n

her atest oo$ she eB+ains

Strategy2maing$ understood reationay$ inoes connecting no-edge

resources and reationa resourcesto generate moiisation force. Such

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resources form in institutiona sites in goernance andsca+es from -hich a

strategic framing discourse diffuses out-ards.Efforts in strategy2maing may

e initiated in many different institutiona sites$ ut to hae significant effects$ the

moiisation dynamichas to moe to-ards arenas that are centra to accessing

the resources (oer -hich a strategy needs) to gain infuence. (3eaey &00"$

198)


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+oitica in the conteBt of mediation and confict resoution in -hich$ echoing !ent

Fy,erg$ he +rioriti/es >+ractica ,udgment.@

!efore +roceeding to +anning theorys third tas$ et me reca the ma,or

>ada+tations@ oer the +ast fifty years or so to the continuay changing if not

turuent conteBt in -hich +anning +ractice is emedded in :orth America

dialogue, social learning, utual learning, social participation, collaboration,

ediation, social obili+ation, social and political epowerent, and strategic

planning or visioning.*aen together$ these terms and the theories to -hich they

are ined hae contriuted to changing the face of our +rofession.

III Planning theory as the wor" of translation

*lanning theory, li'e planning practice, is an eclectic or, put ore elegantly, an

inter9disciplinary, even trans9disciplinary field. !s planners, we have a growing

literature of our own, of course, and our professoriat is increasingly hoe9grown

rather than iported fro allied disciplines. 6his was not always the case, and

as a planning student at the University of Chicago, virtually all of y teachers

were econoists, geographers, sociologists, anthropologists, students of politics,

counication specialists, various developent types, and even the odd

historian. #el Branch, the first planning *h.4. out of &arvard$s Draduate School

of 4esign, was our physical planner, but his was a lone voice for the city as

artifact aong a faculty of social scientists. 6he University of Chicago did not

teach architecture, and an early attept to lin' up with the Illinois Institute of

&"


28/46

6echnology II61, which did architecture and urban design, failed to ateriali+e

because of the deep cognitive division between the design tradition and the

critical9analytic social science orientation we professed. )evertheless, we prided

ourselves in being 2inter9disciplinary3, a pride that would ultiately coe to fall

when ten years after its founding, the *rogra for Education and


29/46

graduate as generalists with only a vague grasp of what the university as a

whole has on offer.

Fet, without reaching beyond its own borders in the search for pertinent

'nowledge, it is easy for planning to becoe ore and ore inward9oriented, a

professional field that defines itself chiefly by its own technical copetencies. In

the longer ter, building walls around our little turf will inevitably lead to

intellectual stasis. It is for this reason that I want to argue for a third tas' of

planning theory I call translation, that raises our hori+on to include the vast field

of huan 'nowledge or perhaps, to spea' with Geonie Sandercoc', of

'nowledges in the plural Sandercoc' /, !ppendi-1.

I see planning theorists actively engaged in ining e-peditions into the universe

of 'nowledge, on the loo'out for concepts and ideas they believe to be of interest

in planning education. 6heir specific contribution to theory is to return fro these

e-peditions to hoe base and translate their discoveries into the language of

planning where they will either ta'e root or be uncereoniously forgotten.

A

As discussion in the +receding +arts of this essay has sho-n$ +anning theorists

ty+icay enture eyond the oundaries of their +rofession. 3ere then 5 -i not

try to re+rise the trans2disci+inary generation of +anning no-edge. 5nstead$ 5

-i highight the -or of a eading +anning theorist to -hom -e are indeted for

eB+anding our understanding of the domain of +anning Susan S. Fainstein. 5

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30/46

might e=uay hae chosen other +rominent schoars$ such as !ent Fy,erg$

John Forester$ eonie Sandercoc$ or 'atsy 3eaey -hose -ritings hae ins+ired

generations of students. !ut s+ace imitations +reent me from citing more

eBam+es.

Fainstein -ors from -ithin a +oitica economy tradition -hose origins can e

traced in MarBist and neo2MarBist -ritings. 3er contriutions to +anning theory

are distinctie in t-o -ays. First$ she has consistenty esche-ed astract

theori/ing in faor of grounding theory in the reaities of s+ecific cities such as

:e- Gor$ ondon$ or Amsterdam. Much of her -or has een critica of +anning

and -as fre=uenty regarded as haing more to do -ith the uran than -ith

+anning as such. er the ast t-o decades$ ho-eer$ and this is her second

mar of distinction$ she has een deeo+ing a normatie asis for +anning the

>,ust city@ (Fainstein &000; forthcoming). As distinct from +rocess theorists$ she

insists on the im+ortance of ooing at +anning outcomes. good city$@ Fainstein criticay eBamines not ony aternatie

isions of the city$ such as the :e- ranism$ ut engages authors -ho$ though

remote from most +anning reading ists hae had much to say on ho- to thin

aout the =uaity of uran ife. Among them are John Ra-s$ Amartya Sen$

Martha :ussaum$ JHrgen 3aermas$ and most im+ortanty$ 5ris Marion Goung.

0


31/46

6ra-ing s+ecificay on Goung (1990; &000)$ she argues for a +oitics of coectie

identities$ of grou+ings according to gender$ race$ seBua orientation$ and

immigrant status eyond those of socia cass -hich had een the tradition on the

marBist eft throughout most of the 19thand &0thcenturies. She aso su+ersedes

the customary e=uity argument of this tradition$ y arguing not merey for greater

income e=uaity ut for im+roements in the tota circumstances of ife of oth

+oor and midde income grou+s in their +articuar iing enironments. She

-rites >Faiure to acno-edge the coherence of coectiities and their structura

reationshi+ to each other eades a fundamenta socia issue of redistriutionI

ho- to aoid im+osing an unacce+tae urden on the etter2off. 3o- much

socia confict is an acce+tae +rice to +ay for greater ,ustice? N!Oy continuing

to conerse aout ,ustice$ -e can mae it centra to the actiity of +anning. *he

ery act of naming has +o-er@ (o+.cit.).

#onclusion

1


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5 hae argued that doing +anning theory has three tass that are centra to its

endeaors the +hioso+hica tas of eoing a humanist +hioso+hy to guide

+anners in their -or; the tas of ada+ting +anning +ractices to the continuay

changing course of human affairs; and the tas of transating no-edges and

conce+ts from fieds other than +anning into our o-n anguage. 5 see these tass

as maing a distinctie contriution to the +anning iterature and utimatey to our

+rofessiona +ractice as -e.

5 hae aso tried to sho- ho- +ursuing these tass graduay affects +anning

+ractices$ usuay ia +rofessiona education$ -hen students are first introduced

to academic discourses in the fied. As an integratie$ trans2disci+inary fied of

studies$ +anning addresses ife in a of its on2the2ground com+eBity. Such an

understanding of its mission cannot dis+ense -ith a normatie foundation such

as human fourishing and the ,ust city$ -hich of course -i e a-ays contested$

foreer remaining >under construction.@ 5n a ra+idy changing -ord$ the +anning

+rofession needs aso continuay ad,usted its orientation to -hat is ha++ening$

as these changes are inter+reted y an array of disci+ines su++emented y

+anners o-n +erce+tions and eB+eriences. Finay$ these t-o tass ca for a

third$ a reaching out eyond ones o-n it of turf to ring ac to our -orsho+s

at home the insights gained from the no-edge +ursuits of others. *hese three

tass are -hat 5 regard as centra to the concerns of +anning theorists and as

essentia to the itaity of our fied.

&


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$eferences

Aers$ Reecca &000$ Inventing Gocal 4eocracy@ Drassroots *olitics in Bra+il.

!ouder and ondon ynne Rienner.

Arechts$ ouis &004$ >Strategic (S+atia) 'anning ReeBamined$@ Environent

and *lanning B@ *lanning and 4esign, 1$ "42%8.

Arechts$ ouis and . ieois &004$ >*he Femish 6iamond ran :et-or in

the Maing? European *lanning Studies, /, H5/9;0.

Atshuer$ Aan and 6aid ueroff &00$ #ega9pro%ects@ 6he *olitics of Urban

*ublic Investent.


34/46

!uer$ Martin 19#%$ 6he "nowledge of #an@ Selected Essays. Edited y Maurice

Friedman. :e- Gor 3ar+er oins.

astes$ Manue 198$ 6he City and the Drassroots@ ! Cross9Cultural 6heory of

Urban Social #oveents. !ereey niersity of aifornia 'ress.

ar$ Mary E. &00&$ In Search of &uan )ature.ondon Routedge.

ohen$ Joshua$ 1998$ >6emocracy and ierty$@ in John Ester$ ed.$ 4eliberative

4eocracy.amridge amridge niersity 'ress$ 18%2&1.

ohen$ Jean . and Andre- Arato 199&$ Civil Society and *olitical 6heory.

amridge$ MA M5* 'ress.

6ay$ 3erman E. and Joshua Farey$ &004$ Ecological Econoics. Adocacy and 'uraism in 'anning$@ ?ournal of the

!erican Institute of *lanning, 1 4$ 128.

6ougass$ Mie and John Friedmann$ eds.$ 1998$ Cities for Citi+ens@ *lanning

and the


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Fy,erg$ !ent 1998$ >Em+o-ering ii Society 3aermas$ Foucaut and the

Puestion of onfict$@ in Mie 6ougass and John Friedmann$ eds.$Cities for

Citi+ens@ *lanning and the


37/46

Friedmann$ John 199$Q*o-ard a :on2Eucidean Mode of 'anning$Q ?ournal of

!erican *lanning !ssociation$ %9$ 48&28%.

Friedmann$ John &00&$ 6he *rospect of Cities.Minnea+ois niersity of

Minnesota 'ress.

Friedmann$ John$ Reecca Aers$ and iian Auter$ eds. 199#$ Eergences@

oen$s Struggles for Givelihood in Gatin !erica.A atin American Studies

o. 8&. os Angees A atin American enter 'uications.

Fung$ Archon$ &004$ Epowered *articipation@


38/46

utmann$ Amy and 6ennis *hom+son$ &004$ hy 4eliberative 4eocracy>

'rinceton 'rinceton niersity 'ress.

3a,er$ Maarten and 3.


39/46

3eaey$ 'atsy &00#$ >Reationa Dom+eBity and the 5maginatie 'o-er of

Strategic S+atia 'anning$@ European *lanning Studies,14$ %&%24#.

3eaey$ 'atsy &00"$ Urban Cople-ity and Spatial Strategies@ 6owards a

S+aces of 5nsurgent iti/enshi+$@ in James

3oston$ ed.$ Cities and Citi+enship. 6urham 6ue niersity 'ress.

5nnes$ Judith E. and 6aid E. !ooher &00$ >oaoratie 'oicy Maing

oernance *hrough 6iaogue$@ in Maarten 3a,er and 3endri


40/46

7noB$ 'au and 'eter J. *ayor$ eds. 199%$ orld Cities in a orld Syste.

amridge amridge niersity 'ress.

7rumho/$ :orman and John Forester 1990$ #a'ing E7uity *lanning or'@

Geadership in the *ublic Sector. 'hiade+hia *em+e niersity 'ress.

7unster$ James 3o-ard &00#$ 6he Gong Eergency.:e- Gor roe 'ress.

e!aron$ Michee &00&$ Bridging 6roubled aters@ Conflict *he Science of Mudding *hrough$@ *ublic

!dinistration


41/46


42/46

'oany$ 7ar 19""$ 6he Givelihood of #an. Edited y 3arry


43/46

Sandercoc$ eonie &00$ Cosopolis @ #ongrel Cities in the /stCentury.

ondon ontinuum.

Sanya$ !ish-a+riya &00&$ >oai/ation$ Ethica om+romise and 'anning

*heory$@ *lanning 6heory, 1 (&) 11#2&.

Sassen$ Sasia$ ed. &00&$ Dlobal )etwor's, Gin'ing Cities. ondon Routedge.

Sassen$ Sasia &00#a$ Cities in a orld Econoy.

rd

ed. *housand as$ A

'ine Forge 'ress.

Schram$ Sanford F. and !rian aterino &00"$ #a'ing *olitical Science #atter.

:e- Gor :e- Gor niersity 'ress.

See$ 7aus &00#$ ed.$ ur rulichen Entwic'lung beitragen. *lanung neu

den'en, vol. /. 4ortund@ 4orothea


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1A right is any caim$ indiidua or coectie$ on organi/ed society and its institutions$ een though not a

such caims are uniersay acno-edged (Sen 1999). 6eried from the human right to fourishing are

>human needs@ that can sere as guide+osts to +anning -or$ such as MaB2:eefs matriB of human needs@

that is ased on the four eBistentia categories of eing$ haing$ doing$ and interacting (6ay and Farey &004$

&9240).

&*-o eBce+tions to this generai/ation come to mind Aers (&000) and 3a,er and


46/46

8rgani/ed aor$ neer ery interested in oca +anning issues$ -as further marginai/ed through anti2union

egisation and the ongoing +rocesses of de2industriai/ation.

9For a riiant anaysis of the unresoed tension et-een consensus and +o-er conficts as directions of

+oitica +ractice$ see Mouffe &00%.

10Sandercocs +oitica economy of and deas in Meourne (Austraia) is an eary +recursor to Fainsteinsanaysis (Sandercoc 19"%; 1990).

Ac"nowledgments 5 am dee+y gratefu to eonie Sandercoc$ !ent Fy,erg$ 'atsy

3eaey$ 'eter Marcuse$ Susan Fainstein$ John Forester$ 7aus See$ Serena 7ataoa$ and

seera anonymous critics for their many comments and suggestions to earier ersions of

this essay. As is a-ays the case$ 5 asoe them a of any remaining errors of omission

and commission -hich$ aas$ are ery much my o-n. My sincere thans aso to 7aren

ha++e -ho after a year$ +rodded me to undertae this massie reision of -hat 5 had

originay sumitted.

a bibliographical essay

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