Cardiff University | Prifysgol Caerdydd ORCA
Online Research @ Cardiff 
WelshClear Cookie - decide language by browser settings

Decolonizing Planning Persepctives: opportunities for the future

Davis, Juliet ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2056-5792 and Melhuish, Clare 2025. Decolonizing Planning Persepctives: opportunities for the future. Planning Perspectives 10.1080/02665433.2025.2598764

[thumbnail of Decolonizing Planning Perspectives_ opportunities for the future_.pdf]
Preview
PDF - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives.

Download (211kB) | Preview

Abstract

The concept of decolonization has received significant critical attention acrossacademic disciplines, including planning history, leading some scholars tocaution against its conceptual stretching. Within Planning Perspectives, a leadingjournal in Planning History however, the term is relatively absent, signallingopportunities for future content, such as special issues, wider geographicalscope, and engagement with multilingualism. Although multiple contributionscritically address the colonial origins and legacies of spatial planning models incirculation worldwide, areas that remain under-explored include the impacts ofpolitical decolonization on urban settlements in ex-colonial territories, andchallenges to colonial epistemologies in research and institutional cultures. Webegin this paper by acknowledging our positionalities in relation to coloniallegacies before reviewing the journal’s engagement with the intertwinedhistories of planning, colonialism and decolonization to date. Drawing on ourresearch, we suggest there is scope for greater critical focus on decolonizingagendas in planning history, in the context of wider interdisciplinary debates onthe meanings and politics of decolonization, Reparatory Justice, and thelegacies of colonialism in spatial planning, development and urban studiesworldwide. The paper concludes by proposing five potential avenues for‘decolonizing’ Planning Perspectives in the future.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Published Online
Status: In Press
Schools: Schools > Architecture
Subjects: N Fine Arts > NA Architecture
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
ISSN: 1466-4518
Date of First Compliant Deposit: 13 January 2026
Date of Acceptance: 25 November 2025
Last Modified: 14 Jan 2026 10:17
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/183860

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item Edit Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

View more statistics