New Directions in Planning Theory free essay sample

She examines the three approaches referred to above under the rubrics of: (1) the communicative del; sometimes called the collaborative model, emphasizes the planners role in mediating among stakeholders within the planning situation (2) the new urbanism; frequently labeled neo-traditionalism, paints a physical picture of a desirable city to be obtained through planning; ; (3) and the just city, which derives from the political economy tradition, while also outcome oriented, is more abstract than the new urbanism, presenting a model of spatial relations based on equity. The Communicative Model The communicative model draws on two philosophical approaches-? American pragmatism as developed in the thought of John Dewey and Richard Rotor and the theory of communicative rationality as worked out by Judger Habeas. 5 The two strands differ somewhat in their methodologies. Neo-pragmatism tends toward empiricism. Theoretical and Practical Deficiencies In its effort to save planning from elitist tendencies, communicative planning theory runs into difficulties. The communicative model should not be faulted for its ideals of openness and diversity. We will write a custom essay sample on New Directions in Planning Theory or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page New urbanism have achieved considerable attention in the United States and, to a lesser extent, in Great Britain . Their orientation resembles that of the early planning theorists Benzene Howard, Frederic Law Limited, Patrick Geodesin their aim of using spatial relations to create a close-knit social community that allows diverse elements to interact. The new urbanism call for an urban design that includes a variety of building types, mixed uses, intermingling of housing for different income groups, and a strong privileging of the public realm CritiqueThe new urbanism is vulnerable to the accusation that its proponents oversell their product, promoting an unrealistic environmental determinism that has threaded its way throughout the history of physical planning THE JUST CITY In Socialism: Utopian and Scientific Frederica Engels (1 935, p. 54) presents the Marxian critique of utopianism: The final causes of all social changes and political revolutions are to be sought, not in minis brains, not in mans better insight into eternal truth and justice, but in changes in the modes of production and exchange.For Marx and Engels, social transformation could occur only when the times were ripe, when circumstances enabled the forces for social amelioration to attain their objectives. In their view utopian thinkers like Robert Owen and Fouri er could not succeed because they developed a social ideal that did not coincide with a material reality still dominated by capitalist interests. Only smashing the structure of class domination could create the conditions for achieving a just society.CONCLUSION In Her conclusion she defends the continued use of the just city mode and a edified form of the political-economy mode of analysis that underlies it, described below The three types of planning theory described in this essay all embrace a social reformist outlook. They represent a move from the purely critical perspective that characterized much theory in the seventies and eighties to one that once again offers a promise of a better life. Whereas reaction to technocracy and positivism shaped planning theory of that period, more recent planning thought has responded to the challenge of post- modernism.