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Strategic Planning as a Field of Practices

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Book cover Making Strategies in Spatial Planning

Part of the book series: Urban and Landscape Perspectives ((URBANLAND,volume 9))

Abstract

Beyond the appearance the dominant conception of strategic planning is still rooted in the rational comprehensive paradigm of planning. We have added sophistication, i.e., the consideration of the plurality of actors as a constitutive character of the process, the need to construct consensus among different subjects, the selectivity and the attention towards implementation. But the idea is still that of defining objectives and trying to design a set of actions which allow to pursue them.

The chapter presents a different approach in the experiment conducted in Milan. We did not have a strong power to support the plan. Somehow we have been forced to adopt a much less linear approach, characterised by an indirect connection between a structure of argumentation which indicates a direction and a possible evolution of the current situation and a set of actions at different levels. This approach can define strategic planning as a field of practices rather than as a coherent sequence of coordinated actions. The main question is the following: is this way of conceptualising strategic planning just the result of a series of specific circumstances, or is this a promising approach which could be more effective in coping with situations where power is fragmented and strong leadership non-existent - an approach fostering innovation and change?

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Architecture and Planning, Polytechnic of Milan, 20133, Milan, Italy

    Alessandro Balducci

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  1. Alessandro Balducci
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Correspondence to Alessandro Balducci .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dipto. Conservazione dei Beni, Architettonici e Ambientali, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via Roma 402, Napoli, 80132, Italy

    Maria Cerreta

  2. Fac. Architettura, Dipto. Architettura e Pianificazione, Politecnico di Milano, Via Bonardi 3, Milano, 20133, Italy

    Grazia Concilio

  3. , Department of Architecture and Town Plan, Polytechnic of Bari, Via Orabona 4, Bari, 70125, Italy

    Valeria Monno

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Balducci, A. (2010). Strategic Planning as a Field of Practices. In: Cerreta, M., Concilio, G., Monno, V. (eds) Making Strategies in Spatial Planning. Urban and Landscape Perspectives, vol 9. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3106-8_3

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