by Wagner Planner Editors
Articles included in the Spring 2017 issue share a common thread — they offer perspectives on planning’s intersection with politics. As aspiring practitioners, we are constantly provoked to question the role of the planner: are we facilitators, developers, technocrats, or mediators? And, in all these roles, we wrestle with identifying the best practices in achieving efficiency, equity, and sustainability.
Cosby’s article, “In Defense of Public Space,” urges us to consider the level of access, freedom, and mobility we should expect from public space within the dense urban environment. Cohen’s article, “If All Politics Is Local, What Does this Election Say About Planning?,” provides opinion on infrastructure ballot measures through this past election. And, Cabre Romans’ article, “European Views on the American Way of Planning,” discusses the differences and implications between the respective planning processes as he sees it.
Through the articles included in this issue, we invite you to consider the evolving politics of planning, our role as students in determining tomorrow’s planning policies, and our various perspectives as we approach our solutions. Above all, our goal is to stir thoughtfulness and inclusiveness within our community so that each of us could enshrine these skills in our practice.
Editors,
Niki Kokkinos and Ashley Smith