The aim of the course is to give an introduction on spatial and transport planning concepts and developments in Japan and especially focusing on the issues of urban development, mobility, shrinking regions and reconstruction. The students will be able to comment and reflect on the following developments:

• Students can critically reflect upon spatial development strategies and future spatial challenges in Japan and Austria.
• Students are able to understand the impact of urban policies on the spatial development in different countries and on different levels.
• Students are able to identify and understand systems of policy makers in complex policy fields, exemplified by the system of urban policies (multi-level and cross-sectoral governance), mobility, shrinking regions and reconstruction after damages from natural disaster.
• Students gain knowledge about the pitfalls and challenges of designing and implementing urban policies on different levels and in different administrative systems.

This transdisciplinary concept module is organized in cooperation with the Department of Spatial Planning, the Institute of Transportation (both TU Wien), Faculty of Science and Engineering, Saga University and the Department of Architecture and Environment Systems of Shibaura Institute of Technology (Tokyo).

Through collective discussions and research, aiming to reflect and interpret spatial planning form a Japanese and Austrian point of view, the challenges of spatial and transport planning policies and practices are examined and analyzed. After this interdisciplinary and theoretical discourse, strategies or recommendations for future spatial and/or transport development policies are developed.

Application open till February 28th 2017: Please send a creative motivation letter (e.g. expectations, your contribution, learning outcome) related to the topic to fabian.dorner@tuwien.ac.at

Discovering Japan (concept module)

Phase 1 ¿ Getting started: Joint Seminar with students and professors from Saga University on case studies in Austria and comparison with Japanese examples (March 2017)

Phase 2 ¿ In-depth research: Research on spatial planning concepts and developments in Japan and especially focusing on the issues of urban development, mobility, shrinking regions and reconstruction from 2011 tsunami disaster (April-June 2017)

Phase 3 ¿ Touching down: Field trip to japan (Kyoto-Saga-Tokyo-Ishinomaki) and Joint Seminar with students and professors from Shibaura Institute of Technology on case studies in Japan (July 2017)

Die concept module consists of the following courses:

• SE, 3 ECTS, English (Master, advanced bachelors) Phase 1 and 2, and
• EX, 3 ECTS, English (Master, advanced bachelors) Phase 3

This is valid for the students registered for the study curriculum on urban and regional planning. As this module, particularly the field trip to Japan, is jointly organized by the Department of Spatial Planning and the Institute of Transportation (Faculty of Civil Engineering) at TU Wien, a different course number and ECTS will apply for the students registered for the study curriculum on civil engineering.

written (research paper) and oral (active participation)