Strategies for Social Inclusion in Development

This seminar offers students an opportunity to pursue advanced work in urban planning that addresses the challenge of social inclusion in local development at the city and community level. The course will focus on the use of strategic planning tools to analyze the dynamics of urban transformation, assess the impacts of change, forecast development scenarios, shape strategies and action plans and, structure frameworks for program implementation. To sharpen their skills, students will analyze in depth a specific site for the duration of the seminar, arrive at a diagnosis of the problem(s) and devise a detailed strategy to promote social inclusion objectives for the area. It is expected that the spatial aspects of each strategy will be documented in some detail. Students are encouraged to work in teams. They will prepare and discuss the sequence of technical tasks involved in the formulation of strategies and action plans. Lectures by the instructors and interim presentations by the student teams will frame the class discussion of methods and tools of strategic approaches to urban planning and their application to concrete situations.Documentation will be provided for three sites:1.A group of 5 communes encompassing an older industrial area and surrounding working class neighborhoods adjacent to the Paris city limits, France.2.The Northeast sector of the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil where industrial development and rapid urbanization are expanding on ecologically sensitive areas and leading to unplanned settlement in environmentally hazardous zones.3.The historical center of Mexico City.Each site presents a range of economic, social and environmental challenges that require strong technical inputs to arrive at effective development strategies.Pedagogic Objectives7To provide students with an opportunity to expand their knowledge of the methods of strategic planning.7To strengthen their ability to apply planning tools to complex urban problems.7To address issues of social inclusion in urban regeneration and development.Requirements7Attendance at the one weekly session7Interim short presentations and class discussion7Final presentation to be made to a panel of guest reviewers7Technical brief summarizing the proposed strategy and action planBasis of Final Grade7Class participation20%7Interim presentations30%7Technical Brief20%7Final Presentation30%Prerequisite GSD 4314: Strategic Planning and Local Development