About the Thematic Area
Who sets the rules, and how do they shape our cities and regions? Spatial governance is heavily shaped by numerous state action, including laws, regulations, and planning activities aimed at steering complex urban and regional environments. Understanding governance requires examining not only what the state does, but also the tools and instruments it uses—whether direct or indirect, binding or non-binding, through hard or soft law. This thematic area seeks to disentangle these state actions while recognizing that governance does not occur in isolation; non-state actors are also actively involved in shaping and responding to legal, regulatory, and planning processes.
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Thematic Highlight
Law and Policy Webinar Series
In 2022, UGoveRN members organized the Law and Policy Webinar Series, driven by the central question of how law and policy differ—particularly as the boundaries between the two domains appear increasingly intertwined in the context of urban governance. The series comprised four sessions featuring international guests, including renowned academics and practitioners. Topics explored ranged from an introduction to the relationship between law and policy, to recent changes in planning law in Belgium and the Netherlands, European directives, and contemporary legal and policy challenges in urban regeneration projects.
Learn more about the webinar series here.
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UGoveRN @AESOP Annual Congress in Paris
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AESOP Roundtable: Regulatory Tools for Affordable Housing
International Academic Workshop on Digital Urban Governance
Digital Governance Excursion
Book Preview: Spatial Governance Landscapes
Joint Session with the Province of North-Holland
