CoPLAN at the 35th AESOP Congress
From July 8 to 12, the 36th annual Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP) Congress was hosted in Paris by the Center for European Studies and Comparative Politics and the Urban School of Sciences Po. Co-PLAN researchers participated in this extraordinary annual event, where nearly 1,200 urban studies experts from around the world engaged in thematic sessions, round tables, keynotes, and field visits centered around the theme “GAME CHANGER? Planning for Just and Sustainable Urban Regions.”
This edition was unique in closely integrating urban planning and political science to critically examine territorial transformations and the green transition. During the week, Anila Bejko, Fiona Imami, and Kejt Dhrami shared their research contributions in two track sessions, the abstracts of which can be found here. Among urban planners, sociologists, political scientists, economists, geographers, and planning professionals, ideas and insights were shared, especially in the two main topics presented by Co-PLAN. The first topic brought discussion and efforts toward conceptualizing a Just Green Transition for the Western Balkans and highlighted the research activities we have been undertaking in the past year within the frame of the GreenFORCE Horizon Project. The second contribution, presented by Kejt Dhrami, discussed Citizen Science in Spatial Planning with a special focus on fostering democratic engagement, highlighting the experience of WBC-RRI.net and GreenLungs.
During this year’s AESOP Congress, we were delighted, alongside our partners from Politecnico di Torino (POLITO) and Nordregio, to host a roundtable discussion, featuring exceptional panelists Prof. Stefano Moroni and Dominic Stead. The roundtable, organized within the framework of our joint GreenFORCE project, rounded off the discussion on “Just Green Transitions: Transforming or Transitioning to What?” Moderated by Yahya Shaker and Erblin Berisha (POLITO), and with the excellent contributions of the four panelists (Stefano Moroni (POLIMI), Dominic Stead (Aalto University), Anila Bejko (CoPLAN), and Alberto Giacometti (Nordregio)), the session fostered robust discussions among more than 20 attendees. It brought forward various angles and perceptions on what Just Green Transitions are, digging into the fundamentals, concepts, and conceptions of justice and justness, the principles of social and spatial justice, and why social justice matters.
Last but not least, this years’ experience at AESOP was highlighted by the AESOP Quality Recognition Award received by our affiliated POLIS University
We look forward to next year’s congress in Istanbul! Stay in touch for more of our research contributions in the international arena.
