UNIT I: The Framework: Taking Action
The introductory lectures outline a theoretical framework for thinking about planning action. Students will be introduced to some classics from the planning literature in the context of a seven-step model of planning practice.
A Seven-Step Model of Planning Practice
Key Dilemmas in Thinking About Planning Practice
UNIT II: Comprehensive Neighborhood Planning: Taking Action In Boston's South End
The case will focus on the urban renewal planning process undertaken in Boston's South End during the early l960's. That process, a comprehensive effort to revitalize the neighborhood both physically and socially was part of a city-wide effort to use the federally-funded urban renewal process as a way of "turning around" Boston- both its Downtown and its neighborhoods. The Boston Redevelopment Authority's (BRA) previous approach to neighborhood planning had been to clear the site. But planning for residential and commercial rehabilitation required the active involvement of residents and neighborhood institutions. The challenge confronting the South End planning team is how to engage residents and other "stakeholders" in a productive and supportive planning process.
Boston (South End)
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Group Presentations (See Guidelines Online)
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Individual Assignments due at Beginning of Class
UNIT III: Who's the Hostage Here? Planners, Peasants, and Politicians in the Sitting of the Mexico City Airport
In October 2001 Mexico's Secretary of Communications and Transport announced the Federal Government's decision to build a new state-of the-art airport on agricultural lands 30 miles northeast of Mexico City. Peasant protest -- which involved a national and international media campaign and, ultimately, hostage-taking -- pushed the President to cancel the plan and consider other sites in the metropolitan area, much to the dismay of private sector developers and others who strongly promoted the project. In this unit, we use this case study to ask questions about the possibilities and limits of citizen protest, about the challenges of planning for a metropolitan region cross-cut by three levels of government, about the dilemma of balancing local, regional and national development aims, about the relationship between planners, politicians, and the private sector, as well as about the use (and abuse) of technical versus political and social criteria in the planning process.
Mexico City - Airport
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Group Presentations (See Guidelines Online)
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Individual Assignments due at Beginning of Class
UNIT IV: Sustainable Development in Rotterdam- Planning or Innovation?
Efforts to achieve sustainable development in the Netherlands are characterized by several conflicts. One is the conflict between the tradition of planned development and the demands sustainability creates for ongoing adaptation, innovation, and learning. The second is the "institutional void" (Hajer) created by the mismatch between the formalized planning practices and the informal networks in which deliberation about emerging problems occurs. A third is the disruption caused by social tensions between new (especially immigrant) communities and the consensus on core social values that has underpinned social, economic, and physical planning in the Netherlands. Finally, planning and development are shaped by the pull of demands for greater integration with global and European political and economic networks and increasing expectations for among stakeholders at the local level to shape the decisions and actions that will affect their lives. In this unit we will look at what planning and innovation suggest for the design of an intervention that can begin to enhance urban sustainability and livability in tangible ways in the face of these tensions.
Sustainable Development in Rotterdam
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Group Presentations (See Guidelines Online)
Class Discussion (See Discussion Questions Online)
Individual Assignments due at Beginning of Class
UNIT V: Composing a Professional Life as a Planner
The content and style of planning education should reflect a clear view of the roles that planners play, the responsibilities they are expected to assume, and the skills (and analytic capabilities) they need to be effective. This section of the Gateway class will provide an opportunity for us to share our views on these topics. The week of panels will bring practitioners from the Department's five program areas to campus to talk with students about their practice. Our goal will be to give students a "boost" in their efforts to think ahead about how they want to use their two years at MIT.
Presentation of DUSP Program Groups
Evening Alumni Panels - see schedule on-line
Thinking about Planning Education
In-class Final
Class Evaluation
Paper and Electronic copy of Group Project.
