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Planning and Law in Evolving Governance

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Evolutionary Governance Theory

Abstract

This chapter presents a theoretical perspective on the roles of law in the evolution of planning systems. Three main roles of law in planning are distinguished: law can enable, delimit and codify planning. How these roles play out and relate to each other in the evolution of a planning system, will differ by community. In four scenario’s we discern key points regarding the relation between the roles of law in evolving spatial governance. Understanding the different roles of law in planning, and their interplay in the evolution of the planning system, adds to the scientific and societal debates on planning and law, where hitherto polarizing discourses (planning vs law) dominated the discussion. More broadly, our perspective on the enabling, codifying and delimiting functions of law in planning sheds a new light on the potential and limitation of both law and planning to shape the future of communities.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    This scenario is inspired by experiences with the Minnesota Design Team, a volunteer-expert organization assisting local communities with planning and design, in the period 2006–2012. It is further underpinned by our research for a book on lakeside living in North America (Radomski and Van Assche 2014).

  2. 2.

    This scenario is inspired by our experiences in the Netherlands and Belgium in the period 1996–2014, as researcher and consultant for government; see e.g. Van Assche et al. (2012); Duineveld et al. (2009, 2013); Van Assche (2006); Beunen (2010); Duineveld (2006).

  3. 3.

    This scenario is inspired by our research on Soviet and post-Soviet planning in 2002–2012 and by the collective experiences at ZEF/Center for Development Research, Bonn University, in post-Soviet rural development in 2000–2012; see e.g. Van Assche et al. (2011, 2013), Djanibekov et al. (2013), Van Assche and Djanibekov (2012).

  4. 4.

    This scenario is mostly inspired by literature, e.g. Easterly (2006); Mansuri and Rao (2012); Ferguson (1994); Waters (2005); Brown et al. (2013); de Soto (2000). Further, it draws on conversations in 2010–2013 with the Africa-specialists at ZEF/Center for Development Research at Bonn University; project related in ZEF working papers 32, 41, 91, 99, 104, 110).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Extension, Planning, Governance and Development, University of Alberta, Jasper Ave, 10230, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T5J 4P6

    Kristof Van Assche

  2. Faculty of Management, Science and Technology, Open University, the Netherlands, Valkenburgerweg, 117, 6419 AT, Heerlen, The Netherlands

    Raoul Beunen

  3. Faculty of Law, Windsor University, 401 Sunset Avenue, Windsor, ON, Canada, ON N9B 3P4

    Anneke Smit

  4. Department of Sociology, University of Antwerp, Sint-Jacobsstraat, 2, 2000, Antwerp, Belgium

    Gert Verschraegen

Authors
  1. Kristof Van Assche
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  2. Raoul Beunen
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  3. Anneke Smit
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  4. Gert Verschraegen
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Correspondence to Kristof Van Assche .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Management, Science and Technology, Open University, Heerlen, The Netherlands

    Raoul Beunen

  2. Faculty of Extension, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada

    Kristof Van Assche

  3. Cultural Geography Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    Martijn Duineveld

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Van Assche, K., Beunen, R., Smit, A., Verschraegen, G. (2015). Planning and Law in Evolving Governance. In: Beunen, R., Van Assche, K., Duineveld, M. (eds) Evolutionary Governance Theory. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12274-8_3

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