After successful completion of the course, students are able to...

• Compare the impact of different international planning systems on metropolitan growth.
• Describe the development of metropolitan regions in terms of the relationship between land use pattern and transportation network.
• Think strategically about how existing metropolitan regions can transform themselves in response to current challenges.

Can cities built for the post-war automobile and manufacturing boom transform themselves in response to the challenges of the 21st century, including climate change, economic restructuring, and demographic transition?

This course will take a comparative, regional, and pragmatic approach to answering this question:

1. Comparative: we will look at urban growth across international contexts, comparing especially the outcomes of different European planning systems to the development of cities in North America

2. Regional: we will focus on the roles cities play in metropolitan regions, and how the possibilities for transformation are shaped by the basic relationship between transportation and land use.

3.Pragmatic: rather than the global cities already known for innovative planning, this course will focus on what can be achieved in the vast urbanized expanse of small cities and suburbs where the majority of urban carbon emissions are generated (and where many planning jobs are located).

• Lecture, literature, and discussion-based seminar
• Interactive debate and discussion of literature, theoretical concepts, and practical problems

This course is one of three compulsory courses of elective module 1 in the master's curriculum Spatial Planning.

In 2023/24, the course is part of the faculty focus on "Transformation des Bestands" (see for further info: https://futurelab.tuwien.ac.at/jahresthema-2023-24).

• Active participation in plenary sessions of the seminar
• Completion of assigned readings (evaluated with reading questions and quizzes)
• Preparation of a Memo examining the effects of a proposed development plan in a specific city

This course is one of three mandatory classes of Module 1 in the Spatial Planning Master's curriculum. Students doing the whole module will be promoted in the registration list.