Breaking Patterns – Changing Cities

43^rd Annual SCUPAD Congress May 5 -8, 2011 in Salzburg, Austria

The industrial revolution of the western world in the 19th century broke spatial patterns dramatically (i.e. Haussmann’s Paris). Now Chinese and Arabic cities are changing comparably (i.e. Dubai). Wars and earthquakes are other big destroyers of cities. After World War II some cities were reconstructed on their historic spatial patterns (i.e. Gdansk, Poland or Freiburg, Germany) to save national or local heritage. But in other cities the reconstruction followed ‘modern’ spatial patterns serving car-mobility (Hannover), ‘socialistic’ planning ethics (Dresden, Berlin; capitalistic approaches were not much different) or implementing a different image of a new city (i.e. Skopje, Macedonia after an earthquake 1963) – thus breaking patterns of the city before.SCUPAD Congress 2011 will look at a variety of other impacts, which also break patterns and change cities - often more silent and across a broader space of time. These include climate, individual behavior, political and administrative decision-making, responsibility of investors - all with consequences on spatial patterns. It is obvious that in the areas of individual, economical and political action new impacts should force us to re-evaluate current development patterns. But too often those patterns are replicated regardless of an urgent need for change.

SCUPAD Congress 2011 will look at a variety of other impacts, which also break patterns and change cities - often more silent and across a broader space of time. These include climate, individual behavior, political and administrative decision-making, responsibility of investors - all with consequences on spatial patterns. It is obvious that in the areas of individual, economical and political action new impacts should force us to re-evaluate current development patterns. But too often those patterns are replicated regardless of an urgent need for change.

SCUPAD Congress 2011 starts with keynotes on the growing impact of climate on cities (Dr. Reusswig, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research) and on broken patterns in the history of planning (Gerhard Schimak, Technical University, Vienna). Case studies will include sessions on sustainable mobility (Amsterdam), different processes of political decision-making and participation in the restructuring of a main train-station (Stuttgart and Zuerich), political and private acting in urban renewal (Tbilisi) and on new goals and expectations of investors (Netherlands). The goal of presenting these case studies is not their technical and planning background but the analysis of broken and new emerging patterns regarding behavior and decision-making, and their influence on the change of cities.

Workshops will engage such questions as: Can we productively break prescriptive patterns imposed by planning, the economy or political traditions? Do we need more participation with stakeholders and closer collaboration among interdisciplinary experts (like climatologists, planners, demographers, neighborhood organizations and politicians) to better understand different impacts? What are reasons for resistance against the breaking of patterns? Additionally, is the pedagogy for educating new generations of planners only maintaining the status quo?