APL360 Planning for Sustainable Urban Regions

Credits (ECTS):15

Course responsible:Jin Xue

Campus / Online:Taught campus Ås

Teaching language:Engelsk

Limits of class size:35

Course frequency:Annually

Nominal workload:

In total 375 hours:

Lectures: ca. 50 hours

Project work with supervision: ca. 160 hours

Individual essay: ca. 40 hours

Self-study (reading literature, preparing for lectures, etc.): ca. 125 hours

Teaching and exam period:This course starts in Spring parallels. This course has teaching / evaluation in Spring parallels.

About this course

The focus of the course is primarily on planning in urban regions for sustainable development. The course will introduce urban sustainability debates and provide a critical perspective on the prevailing growth-based sustainable urban development paradigm; discuss spatial mechanisms at the urban regional level, through which planning strategies can have positive and negative impacts on both environmental and social sustainability; and stimulate creative planning thinking and approaches to improve environmental sustainability and social justice. The course consists of 15-16 lectures and a research project work in groups. The course includes four themes: (1) Definition and driving forces of urban regions; (2) Coordinated land use and transport planning; (3) Urban regional land use; and (4) Urban regional planning and governance. In parallel to the lectures, students will write an individual essay of around 1000 words, and conduct a research project in groups, which leads to a report of ca.6000 words long.

Learning outcome

Upon successful completion of the course, the students will be able to:

Knowledge

debate different concepts and understandings of sustainable urban development;
identify social and economic driving forces of urban-regional spatial development;
explain relationships at an urban regional scale between land use, transport infrastructure and travel behavior;
identify and describe main strategies in land use and transport infrastructure planning at an urban regional scale for environmental sustainability;

Skills

obtain academic writing skills through preparing a research report involving analysis, critique and argumentation for or against spatial planning strategies;

Competence

critically assess concepts, methods and procedures in transport infrastructure planning;
analyze the consequences to environmental and social sustainability of land use solutions and proposals on the urban regional scale;
argue for or against certain land use, transport and housing solutions and polices based on certain values and norms;
propose alternative solutions and proposals for land use, transport infrastructure and housing development in urban regions based on certain norms and values.

Learning activities
Lectures, seminar, project work, individual essay, supervision
Teaching support
Each project group will be assigned a supervisor to facilitate their group work. The course responsible will normally be available via email.
Prerequisites
MA level
Assessment method
Portfolio assessment consisting of:
- individual essay during the semester (weighted 40%)
- project group assignment (weighted 60%)
Portfolio assessment in the form of a grading scale A-F.

Group task Karakterregel: Letter grades
Examiner scheme
Two internal examiners evaluate and grade. A meeting will be organized where the examiners give oral feedback to the project groups attending the meeting. Written feedback to the group work is given afterwards. Attendance in the meeting is not obligatory.
Mandatory activity
Lectures, seminar, project work.
A minimum of 80% attendance is required for lectures and seminars.
Teaching hours
100 hours
Preferential right
M-BYREG, M-EIE; M LA
Reduction of credits
There is no overlap with other courses.
Admission requirements
Minimum Requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway (general admission)