Master planning by and for the urban shared mind: towards a ‘neighbourhood 3.0’.

In the introduction to this volume the editors raise important issues which we follow up here. There is a distinction drawn between the 19-20th century master-planning model and its deterministic approach, and a 21st century model and its integrated approach. There are over-arching principles of sustainability, resilience, collaboration, learning and well-being – all to be integrated in the 21st century model. But again these principles call for more definition – sustainability for whom, resilience of what, and so on.

This chapter aims to respond: firstly, with an overview of the methodology developed for such questions - ‘Urban 3.0’ - drawn from more detailed papers and the book of the same name. Then we focus on two over-arching themes. The first is about the ‘product’: what are the neighbourhood or local community qualities, for which we are master planning? The Urban 3.0 method provides insights on the qualities of such liveable and prosperous communities. The second question is about ‘process’: how can master-planning work, to plan and manage the urban change which can move towards these qualities? Here the method brings insights on the dynamic cycle of urban change, and the kinds of policies which can work with it.