MPlan Planning

This course has normally included an overseas field trip in year 4, which is an optional part of the course. Please note there is a student contribution towards the cost of the trip depending on the location.

We are committed to attracting and supporting the very best students from all backgrounds to study this course.  

You could be eligible for cash bursaries of up to £2,500 to support your studies. 

Find out about our funding opportunities

• Introduction to urban development planning in cities of the global South
• Historical and theoretical perspectives on planning in the global South
• Conceptions of the urban informal economy
• Urban management and decentralised governance
• Planning for urban land tenure in the context of informality
• Planning for housing improvements in urban poor areas
• Urban transport challenges in rapidly motorizing countries
• Interactions between planners and urban indigenous groups
• Planning for climate change impacts

• To critically examine urban planning approaches and methodologies used in the global South, which are (or in some cases are not) conducive to achieving equitable and sustainable urban development and poverty reduction in this context.
• To understand key issues influencing the development of planning practice in global Southern cities, including historical and theoretical perspectives; and to explore fundamental phenomena shaping urban development planning in the global South today, namely the urban informal economy, and decentralised governance.
• To explore key elements of urban provision that planning in this context must address – namely secure urban land tenure, housing improvements, urban infrastructure, and public space – and to understand the impacts of disaster risk and climate change as issues that are of increasing concern to planners.
• To draw on different examples of real-world urban planning practice, including formal policy-led approaches and more community-focused ones, to analyse their success in addressing key urban issues in the context of urban informality.
   

Learning and teaching materials for this course unit are provided on the VLE. This supports development of digital skills. In addition the reading list is made available through the Reading List Online. Part of the research for both assignments is conducted through the use of online resources.

Have a critical understanding of the contemporary discourses and practices of urban development planning in the context of cities of the South

Be able to apply their knowledge of frameworks for the analysis of urban development planning in cities of the South

Have an understanding of practical cases in which planning is conducive to poverty reduction and inclusive, equitable and sustainable cities

Have engaged in project work both independently and in collaboration with peers

Group presentation (15 minutes): 25%

Individual essay (2500 words): 75%

Summative feedback for group presentation and individual essay. Verbal feedback will be given in discussions during lectures, tutorials and presentation sessions.

Beall, J. and Fox, S. (2009) Cities and Development. Abingdon, Routledge.
Bicknell, J., Dodman, D. et al. (2009) Adapting Cities to Climate Change: Understanding and
  Addressing the Development Challenges. London: Earthscan.
Cheema, G.S. and  Rondinelli, D.A. (eds.) (2007) Decentralizing Governance: Emerging
  Concepts and Practices. Washington DC: Brookings Institution.
Evans B. (2007) Understanding the Urban Poor’s Vulnerabilities in Sanitation and Water Supply.
  Centre for Sustainable Urban Development.
Mitlin, D. and Satterthwaite, D. (2013) Urban poverty in the global South: Scale and nature.
  Earthscan, London.
Moser, C. (2009) Ordinary Families, Extraordinary Lives: Assets and Poverty Reduction in
  Guayaquil, 1978-2004. Washington DC: Brookings Institution.
-Moser, C. (ed) (2016) Gender, Asset Accumulation and Just Cities: Pathways to transformation. London and New York: Routledge.
Roy, A. and Alsayyad, N. (2004) Urban informality: Transnational perspectives from the Middle
  East, Latin America and South Asia. Oxford, Lexington Books.
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (2013) Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements, UN-Habitat.