The implications of self-organizing phenomena for planning strategies and interventions are a relatively new topic of research that is gaining increasing traction with urban planners and the emerging literature. The problem is that the concept of self-organization is at present applied in a variety of different ways in the contemporary planning debate, a fact that has generated misunderstandings, dubious definitions, and questionable practical suggestions. The aim of this article is to (1) unravel this complex issue by differentiating urban phenomena that are usually all labeled as self-organizing; (2) identify which of them is the most challenging for planning theory and practice, and (3) discuss how planning can productively relate to this form of self-organization.

No abstract

While cities as a whole work as complex adaptive systems, the same cannot be said of many of their neighbourhoods constructed in the 20th century. The formation and perpetuation of anti-adaptive-neighbourhoods is a very recent and still under-explored phenomenon in urban history. The paper investigates the causes behind this phenomenon and suggests policy and design implications to generate neighbourhoods and built environments that are more adaptable. It demonstrates that contemporary discussions can be enriched if we pay more attention to certain underestimated urban factors that guarantee the incremental adaptation of the built environment: action, ownership, and time.

In the course of the nineteenth century, many countries attempted to simplify their regulatory systems; since then, however, the entire legal apparatus has become ever more complex, being based on the (debatable) notion that law must mirror the growing complexity of society. Owing to this presumption, complex land-use and building issues have rapidly generated a host of equally intricate rules. However, some critics have argued that complex systems require exactly the opposite treatment, that is, simple rather than complex legal rules. This article explores the concept of simple rules for urban development, investigating what they are, why they are superior, and how they can be achieved.

No abstract