nick wright planning
Archive
Welcome to dedicated archive chronicaling all of the analysis and projects posts published on the site to date. You can easily navigate through the archive chronologically by clicking the below years.
putting ideas into practice
27 Nov 2010
I've posted a few blogs over the last year about making more people-centred places - and have mentioned lots of ideas, but not a great deal of practice. Which is a little ironic, since most of my work is on real projects. So, let me redress the balance a little...
Read More...Scotland in 2060
23 Oct 2010
What might Scotland be like in 50 years' time? For a credible and considered impression, take a look at these five thoughtpieces commendably commissioned by the Scottish Civic Trust. This valuable series of accessible 2-3 page papers covers: “population and demographics land management and food security politics and governance technology...
Read More...people-centred placemaking + regeneration
16 Oct 2010
“...think of your city as if it were a living work of art where citizens can involve and engage themselves in the creation of a transformed place ... ordinary people can make the extraordinary happen, given the chance” Charles Landry, The Art of City Making, 2006 (pp 385/405) Making better...
Read More...the Big Society | what does it mean for planning?
15 Oct 2010
I'm in favour of the Big Society. I like the ideas of civil society and local responsibility that underpin it, which are on the policy agenda in Scotland as well as in Westminster. But I also believe that it's a long way from taking root. And, as a planner, I...
Read More...making contact with community development
24 Sep 2010
At the Community Development Alliance Scotland’s conference this week, a recurring theme was the need to change attitudes and behaviours if communities are to become more engaged and empowered in decision-making. The speakers, from Keith Brown MSP’s Ministerial address to workshops by the new economics foundation, weren’t just talking...
Read More...Tobermory Harbour | localism in action
22 Aug 2010
As you may already know, I’m interested in how community empowerment can contribute to good placemaking. Not simply consulting or engaging communities about the design and management of places, but consciously empowering them to have control over places. This is hardly a new idea – Rousseau wrote in The...
Read More...planning and budget cuts | it's time to consider our future
15 Jul 2010
We are witnessing two trends in Scottish planning. On the one hand, government planning reforms are - quite rightly - urging the planning system and profession to create better places, play a more effective role in contributing to sustainable economic growth, and work more inclusively and collaboratively with communities and...
Read More...removing roadblocks | highways, hierarchy + shared surfaces
13 Jun 2010
The Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment hosted a conference last week in Perth about new approaches to street design which are now policy in Scotland, thanks to the Scottish Government’s adoption of Designing Streets: a Policy Statement for Scotland. At the core of the new approach is greater emphasis...
Read More...talking planning in Aberdeen city and shire
01 May 2010
With Sèamus Lalor of sèamus lalor associates, I'm facilitating a series of events in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire for ACSEF, the Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Forum. The events are half-day discussions for anyone and everyone involved in planning in the North-East of Scotland: planners from the public and private sectors,...
Read More...Future City Games for planners & facilitators
13 Mar 2010
This article was written for the Kinharvie Facilitation Network, in my role as a member of the Network's steering group. Although written for facilitators, it is just as relevant for planners. Kinharvie Facilitation Network is based at the excellent Kinharvie Institute of Facilitation in Glasgow, which offers excellent training in...
Read More...the essence of culture change
28 Feb 2010
I've just come across this paragraph in Charles Landry's excellent book The Art of City Making. Published in 2006, it is as fresh and relevant today as it was then:“"Planning is about to be different from what it used to be - it is set to be a more holistic...
Read More...lessons in localism from County Tyrone
15 Feb 2010
Last week, I was in Northern Ireland, way out west of the Bann in western County Tyrone; a beautiful land of rolling hills, rich farmland and intriguing history. I was there to consider the future of this fascinating place. Not simply the legacy of the Troubles, but the wider...
Read More...the modernisation of Scottish planning | does it go far enough?
13 Feb 2010
This article was published in the Winter 2009 edition of Urban Realm magazine. If you're interested in a succinct summary of the main elements of current Scottish planning reform, read on. For much of the planning profession, August 3rd 2009 was a big day. It marked the start of a...
Read More...city visioning: why it's worthwhile
17 Jan 2010
For years, I've struggled with the concept of visioning. It's always seemed to me like a bunch of well-meaning folk agree a motherhood-and-apple-pie vision for whatever it is they're discussing - the condition of the roads, their town centre, law and order, whatever - and encapsulate it in a...
Read More...engaging policy-making
05 Jan 2010
Engaging with communities is a big focus in contemporary urban planning - and a focus for a great deal of uncertainty about how to get it right. Most discussion tends to focus on how to involve "the community" in developing proposals for specific places, or in drawing up particular strategies...
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