The power of planners in municipal rural planning - A case study of planners' acting space in strategic planning for villages: Planners power in municipal rural planning - A case study of planners actingspace in strategical planning for villages
Authors
Hansen, Clara Leismann Dybdal ; Mignon, Emilie
Term
4. Term
Publication year
2021
Submitted on
2021-06-04
Pages
82
Abstract
Many villages are losing residents, creating new challenges for planning. Denmark is no exception. Since 2019, the Danish Planning Act has required all municipalities to plan strategically for the development of villages and rural districts as part of their municipal plans. To support municipalities, the association Realdania suggested a method that emphasizes quantitative mapping and measuring community strength through extensive, ongoing participation—but with limited guidance on how to carry it out. Participation matters, yet choosing the right process is hard because it involves people, preferences, relationships, and everyday social life. This thesis examines how planners choose to involve local communities in the strategic planning of villages. It uses Grange’s theory of acting space—the interaction between authority (mandates and rules), ability (skills and resources), and identity (professional self-understanding and motivation)—to ask: How does a planner’s acting space create different barriers to involvement? The study takes a critical realist perspective, which looks for underlying mechanisms behind what we observe. Empirically, it draws on a comparative case study of five planners in five municipalities working on village development strategies. Kühn’s theory on handling conflict in planning processes is added to clarify the planners’ approach and role. The analysis shows that the five planners approached the new legislation in very different ways, with varying efforts and choices about participation. They face barriers in their authority and ability, largely shaped by local political and financial conditions. These barriers mostly constrain the final product rather than the choice to involve people. A clear link appears between planners’ identity and motivation and their choice of process and involvement. Their decisions are influenced less by Realdania’s method and more by who they are and the resources available. Planners facilitate participation from their own identity and motivation, while resources guide the type and amount of involvement.
Mange landsbyer mister indbyggere, og det skaber nye udfordringer for planlægning. Danmark er ingen undtagelse. Siden 2019 kræver Planloven, at alle kommuner arbejder strategisk med udvikling af landsbyer og landdistrikter som led i kommuneplanen. For at støtte kommunerne foreslog Realdania en metode med kvantitativ kortlægning og måling af lokalsamfundenes styrke gennem omfattende og løbende borgerinddragelse, men uden præcis vejledning i, hvordan det skal gennemføres. Deltagelse er vigtig, men at vælge den rette proces er vanskeligt, fordi det handler om mennesker, præferencer, relationer og hverdagens sociale virkelighed. Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan planlæggere vælger at inddrage lokale fællesskaber i den strategiske planlægning af landsbyer. Udgangspunktet er Granges teori om planlæggerens handlingsrum – samspillet mellem myndighed (mandat og regler), evne (kompetencer og ressourcer) og identitet (faglig selvforståelse og motivation). Vi spørger: Hvordan skaber planlæggerens handlingsrum forskellige barrierer for inddragelse? Tilgangen er kritisk realisme, der søger underliggende mekanismer bag det, vi observerer. Empirisk bygger studiet på et komparativt casestudie af fem planlæggere i fem forskellige kommuner, som har arbejdet med strategier for landsbyudvikling. Derudover anvendes Kühns teori om konflikthåndtering i planprocesser til at belyse planlæggernes tilgang og rolle. Analysen viser, at de fem planlæggere har grebet den nye lovgivning meget forskelligt an, med varierende indsatser og valg af borgerinddragelse undervejs. De møder især barrierer i deres myndighed og evne, typisk bestemt af kommunens politiske og økonomiske situation. Disse barrierer begrænser primært det endelige produkt – ikke selve valget af, om og hvordan man inddrager. Der er en tydelig sammenhæng mellem planlæggernes identitet og motivation og deres valg af proces og inddragelse. Valgene styres mindre af Realdanias metode og mere af planlæggerens egen identitet kombineret med de tilgængelige ressourcer. Planlæggerne faciliterer derfor inddragelse ud fra, hvem de er og hvad der motiverer dem, mens ressourcerne sætter rammerne for type og omfang.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]
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