Verena Balz, PhD researcher at the chair of Spatial Planning & Strategy, has published an article on regional design in the journal Planning Theory. The article Regional design: discretionary approaches to regional planning in The Netherlands explores interrelations between planning and design, from a theoretical perspective and by means of an analysis of regional design initiatives that have emerged in the Netherlands between the 1980s and the 2010s, in the context of decentralisation and deregulation. Significantly, the analysis reveals forms of discretional control that shape creative design practice, of particular importance being the flexibility of planning guidance. Design is a relatively unexplored topic in planning literature, despite frequent use of design-led approaches in regional planning, in the Netherlands and other European countries. The article is based on a combination of planning and design theory, thus enhancing understanding between fields.
The article has been made open access, as part of an agreement between SAGE Publishers and Dutch universities. It can be downloaded here.
