Expert Meeting: “Global challenges in polycentric regions. What role for strategic spatial planning?”
In this meeting, experts will discuss a number of global challenges, such as climate change, energy supply, globalization and demographic changes, and their impact on spatial planning policy. They will look into what good practices are emerging in Europe, what readjustments of approaches and reforms of spatial planning systems have already been set up and which are still necessary to meet these challenges.
Global challenges such as climate change, energy supply, globalization or demographic changes, have an increasing impact on societal development. Spatial planning has to introduce new planning views and practices to deal with these developments. This is true for area based policies, where spatial planning has to develop governance approaches to reconcile different and changing demands for space. It demands coordination and integration across sectors, scales, administrative levels or time frames and leads to altering land use practices.
The impact on spatial planning also exists on a more strategic level. Different questions exist in this respect: What types of strategic choices have to be made and on what level, to deal with these new and existing challenges? How to cope with an uncertain future and how to introduce scenarios? How to cope with trans-border impacts and European frameworks? How to introduce a more dynamic planning system that is able to deal with changing planning environments? Etc.
Many questions exist regarding the nature of strategic planning on a regional scale, but few answers are clear. Experts, both from academic and governmental circles, will therefore meet in Brussels on 8 October 2010 to discuss these matters. During plenary sessions and workshops, they will look into what good practices are emerging in Europe. Also, they will focus on what reforms of spatial planning systems have already been set up and which are still necessary to meet these challenges.