KEY CONCEPTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. “ You‟ve got to be careful if you don‟t know where you are going, because you might not get there „ - Yogi Berra Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. WHAT IS PLANNING (Common Sense) Planning is a way of thinking oriented towards the future that anticipates change and designs solutions. It is a systematic process of establishing ends (goals, policies, outcomes) and means and procedures to achieve the end. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. WHAT IS PLANNING (Common Sense) Generic Planning is „ubiquitous‟ – it can be done by anyone anytime anywhere But “professional” planning is governed by: • Professional principles • Standards • Laws Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. Activity Process Discipline Profession PLANNING Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. Planning PLANNING is the process of: • Understanding the types of DECISIONS that need to be made • Assessing OPPORTUNITIES and LIMITATIONS of the future • Identifying the short-and-long-term consequences of alternative choices designed to take advantage of these opportunities or respond to these limitations. • Relating alternative decisions to the GOALS and OBJECTIVES established for an urban area, agency or firm. • Expressing this information to decision makers in a readily understandable and useful form. • The primary purpose of planning is to generate information useful to decision makers on consequences of alternative actions Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING (Academic) sequence of deliberate 1 purposeful actions designed to solve problems systematically, by foreseeing and guiding change through rational decisions, reconciling public and private aims, and arbitrating between competing social, economic, political and physical forces. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING (Academic) allocates scarce resources, 2 particularly land and other resources, in such a manner as to obtain the maximum practicable efficiency and benefit, for individuals and for society as a whole, while respecting the needs of Nature and the requirements of a sustainable future. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING (Legal Definition) “ refers to the multi-disciplinary art and science of analyzing, specifying, clarifying, harmonizing, managing and regulating the use and development of land and water resources, in relation to their environs, for the development of sustainable communities and ecosystems „ - RA 10587 Environmental Planning Act of 2013 Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING Urban Development and Land Use System Settlements Transportation System Utilities and Social Water Services Resources System Cultural institutions, Farming and historic places to Fisheries Critical preserve Ecosystems and Natural Habitats Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. “PLACE-MAKING” – creating livable human spaces and natural communities Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. SOME SHIFTS IN CONTEMPORARY PLANNING Before, Product-Oriented; now Process Oriented. Planning process is as important as planning output. Before, All-Inclusive; now Strategic Before, Compartmental due to administrative boundaries; now Integrated (Trans-border) Before, “Agency-led”; now “Community Based” Before, “Top-Down”; now “Bottom-Up” Before, Open Participation; now Focused Participation Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. ATTRIBUTES OF PLANNING PROCESS SCIENCE AND ART requires quantifiable tools as well as subjective creativity MULTI-DISCIPLINARY requires the expertise of various disciplines; economics; engineering; sociology; architecture; law; geography etc. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. ATTRIBUTES OF PLANNING PROCESS COMPREHENSIVE covers all aspects of man/women and his/her environment; physical, social, economics, political administration and the natural environment. DYNAMIC changes overtime, technological change; cultural norms and traditions; not static; responsive to new demands and needs of people Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. ATTRIBUTES OF PLANNING PROCESS PARTICIPATORY values the engagement of multiple stakeholders. CYCLIC / SPIRAL Unending process; Always goes back to where it started; Were the problems solved? Goals and TIME BOUND objectives attained? At what level of satisfaction? Plan must have a time perspective; short, medium, long range; Basis for plan review and assessment. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. LEVELS OF PLANNING Scope or Coverage of Planning Narrow: Perspective, Concept, Framework, Moderate:Framework Structure, Developmental Broad: Integrated, Comprehensive, Detailed Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. LEVELS OF PLANNING Timeframe/Duration of Plan Short Term: 1-3 years e.g. expenditure plan Medium Term: 3-7 years e.g. development plan Long Term: 10 years e.g. CLUP 30-50 years e.g. Masterplan *Time-horizon of the envisaged future varies according to the type and level of planning Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. WHY DOES PLANNING HAVE TO BE ETHICAL? Niccolo Machiavelli‟s amoral ‟ philosophy of expediency in The Prince (1532): “The ends justify the means.” “Whatever it takes to kill the cat.” Correct Ethics: “The ends and the means have to justify each other.” Consistency and Connectedness between Intention and Action. Correct Science: Need for Congruence between Objectives and Outcomes. Compatibility between Goals and Methods. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND THE STATE STATE‟s main instrument is the GOVERNMENT: Sphere of power. Planning seeks to direct and to control the form of the built environment in the interest of society as a whole; power is necessary to carry out plans. Planning in the public domain is conflictive and therefore political, involves compromises between contending groups Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND THE STATE Planning cannot be isolated from the political context of the city or region because policy decisions affect local interests. At times, planning becomes a practice of what is feasible politically instead of what is technically efficient and effective (Campbell & Fainstein 1997:1). Macro-level policies have impact on micro-level site, and these policies will influence people‟s lives if not affect them adversely. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND THE MARKET MARKET / BUSINESS SECTOR : generates goods, jobs, and incomes for economic survival The planner has to operate alongside the market, directly influencing and frequently assisting its functioning, but in a manner that takes account of both public and private interests Without town planning, land would be apportioned between competing uses by the price mechanism and interaction of supply and demand Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND THE MARKET The market, operating alone, does not provide the most appropriate location for what are generally described as the non-profit making uses of land (e.g., open spaces, roads and bridges, etc.) However, correct siting of these lands can make land uses more profitable Thus, planning assists the market in becoming more efficient. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND CIVIL SOCIETY: Why does planning have to be “participatory”? Civil Society sphere of citizen groups, civic institutions, civic values; facilitates political and social interaction by mobilizing groups to participate in economic, social, political activities Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND CIVIL SOCIETY: Why does planning have to be “participatory”? Process-oriented means engaging and involving people in various phases/stages • People are important because they ultimately execute the Plan; they are the main actors of development. • Hence, Experts have to plan “with” the people and not “for” the people. • Participation and sharing help people overcome inertia and believe that change is possible. “Change We Need, Yes We Can!” Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND CIVIL SOCIETY: Why does planning have to be “participatory”? • It is necessary to build consensus to legitimize and carry out the Plan; Plan provides alternative solutions that have to be acceptable to the people. “Social Acceptability” • Because Planning decisions create tangible impact, (roads, parks, etc.), plan often involves matters in which the people have large emotional stakes Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP & HUMEIN Phils. Inc. PLANNING AND CIVIL SOCIETY: Why does planning have to be “participatory”? • Planning often has large financial consequences on the part of the public. Plans are directly linked to taxes and property values; people eventually pay for the plan. • Citizens who might know more about their locality tend not to defer to external planners; they have to be involved in the process of planning or else they become a major force of resistance. Short Course on Environmental Planning DCERP