Moving away from top-down approaches, contemporary practices embrace more inclusive and participatory models and design processes. Participatory planning, a notion that prioritizes involving the entire community in the decision-making process, has earned widespread recognition and popularity globally. Cities across the world have interpreted participatory planning to fit their unique needs, using technology and government resources to expedite and enhance the process.
People should be the heart of any urban planning. Challenging traditional top-down approaches that marked early urban planning efforts, participatory planning has materialized as a democratizer of design. At its core, participatory planning stresses the active involvement of all members of a user group in shaping the development of their physical and social spaces. Collaboration with the entire community in the strategic and management process of urban planning gives rise to systems-level benefits.
The philosophy has gained international popularity, acknowledging that residents must play a central role in defining the agenda for their communities. This shift is a response to the limitations of centralized planning that often results in socially disconnected urban environments. Centralized planning often lacked public input. Decisions are made by experts without considering the diverse perspectives of the community.
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Community co-creation becomes a tool for unlocking hidden opportunities within cities, especially in addressing issues like overcrowding, traffic, difficult governance, and social segregation. Participatory planning allows designers and communities to strengthen neighborhood ties, and develop new relationships between people and their urban environment.
UN-Habitat has developed a comprehensive toolbox to guide participatory planning efforts, helping local governments implement the New Urban Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals. This step-by-step methodology involves city leaders, planners, civil society, investors, and the private sector. The toolbox provides a process framework, allowing flexibility based on available resources and capacities. It places local authorities and citizens at the forefront of sustainable urban development, promoting an intervention-oriented strategy.
While a globally applicable strategy guides local initiatives, organizations within cities have spearheaded multiple participatory urban planning projects worldwide:
Helsinki, Finland - Summer Streets Project with UrbanistAI
Leveraging the artificial intelligence tool UrbanistAI, city planners engaged citizens and business owners in a participatory design process.
Workshops facilitated collaborative visioning. Citizens were tasked with using the platform to generate alternative visions for predefined sections of the Summer Streets. After this co-creation stage, the participants voted on the proposed visions, culminating in a shortlist of the most favored future scenarios. The workshops wrapped up with a collaborative dialogue between the city planners and the participants.
Auroville, India - Dreamweaving
<p engaging 70 participants, including architects, town planners, multidisciplinary experts, and members of the Residents' Assembly. The initiative aimed to envision a conscious and ecological development of the region. In partnership with BV Doshi's architecture firm, Vastushilpa Sangath, the participatory planning emphasized integration, synthesis, diversity, and a human-centered approach.
Dreamcatching for community alignment, a feedback body for informed oversight, Dreamweaving architectural visioning led by the next generation of architects, and self-education for participatory planning. These initiatives aim to bridge polarities, optimize community participation, and foster cohesive outcomes, acknowledging the need for nuanced discussions and collaborative stewardship in Auroville's urban development.
‘pedestrian first’ strategy of transportation and mobility adopted by Auroville. However, new ways of using information and communications technology have been incorporated into the master plan and are expected to yield results in the long term.
Istanbul, Turkey - Global Future Cities Plan
including typically under-represented groups. In a strategic partnership with UN-Habitat, existing participation mechanisms and gaps were identified, and the needs and resources to successfully implant a participatory approach were mapped.
The outcome supports Istanbul’s Metropolitan Municipality to develop its capabilities, transforming urban planning into a data-informed, more inclusive process. The implementation of the engagement framework has contributed to enhancing a robust approach to data collection, data flows, and overall data governance across various directorates within the municipality. This has bolstered the utilization of data in informing the participatory planning process.
Calgary, Canada - Active Neighborhoods Canada
Active Neighborhoods Canada, a collaboration involving the Montreal Urban Ecology Centre, The Centre for Active Transportation, and Sustainable Calgary, focuses on participatory urban planning for developing projects that enhance active transportation in communities. Their vision includes creating safe urban designs by involving communities in the co-design process. The approach links public health, equity, and built environments to support walking, cycling, and other modes of transportation.
“Reimagine Catwalks Playbook”, a guide for Calgary communities to transform shortcuts, catwalks, mazes, and mews. Originally intended to enhance connectivity between residences, schools, and local parks, these shortcuts were designed to improve travel distances, saving time during a leisurely stroll or bike ride. However, residents avoid using them due to inadequate maintenance. The playbook addresses issues like poor maintenance, lack of snow removal, and inadequate lighting in these areas, providing a guide for community members to leverage their skills and expertise for positive community impact. Additionally, it includes facilitation guides for empathy walks, design workshops, and location observation to encourage the community to collectively ideate solutions to local challenges.
Participatory urban planning is a powerful methodology for addressing global urban challenges and unlocking the latent potential within cities. From initiatives led by organizations like UN-Habitat to local transformations in cities like Helsinki, Auroville, Istanbul, and Calgary, the examples showcase diverse applications and positive outcomes of participatory planning. As governments worldwide increasingly recognize the value of inclusive decision-making processes, participatory planning continues to shape the future of urban development, one collaborative step at a time.
