Development Planning Unit (DPU)
| Established | 1954 |
|---|---|
| Location | , |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/dpu |
The Development Planning Unit (DPU) is a small and specialized postgraduate department within the The Bartlett at the University College London (UCL) that offers students degrees related to urban planning and international development. The DPU focuses on urban development policy and planning in the global south which includes Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East and conducts research with governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and businesses. The DPU, founded in 1954, is a fairly young department within the university.
History[edit]
In 1954 the Department of Tropical Architecture was established by the Architectural Association[1] in London. This department served as the foundation for urban development planning and development studies that grew within it over the next seventeen years (and eventually became the DPU). In 1971, the Department of Tropical Architecture moved to the University College London (UCL), was officially named The Development Planning Unit, and Otto Königsberger was appointed the Professor of Development. Student enrollment and the DPU budget grew vastly in the 70s. In 1980, the first masters program was put into place, led by Ronaldo Ramirez, and the unit began to host conferences on the subjects of housing provision, the future of urbanization, etc.
In 2007, the DPU launched its DPU Dialogues in Development programme, which acts as an international forum for academics, practitioners, and communities to exchange intel and theories about development and development planning. ‘Research Clusters’ were established in 2011 to consolidate and provide a narrative for the research projects – old, new, and ongoing – conducted by the DPU.
In recent years, the DPU has worked with agencies such as the UK Department for International Development (DFID) , various groups within the United Nations (UN), and The Lancet to perform research on development topics including ‘Local Governance, Urban mobility and Poverty Reduction (Lessons from Medellin, Colombia)’ [3] and ‘Shaping cities for health: complexity and the planning of urban environments in the 21st century’[2] [4] .
DPU degrees[edit]
In any given academic year, around 200 students are enrolled in the six masters programs, which averages to course sizes of 25-40 students. Although, from time to time since the DPU's establishment, the unit has struggled with maintaining student enrollment.
The first masters program approved by UCL was an MSc in Urban Development Planning (UDP)[5], added in 1980. This degree encourages urges students to think about contemporary issues facing cities in the global south with regards to space limitations and social justice.Core modules for this masters include ‘The City and Its Relations: Context, Institutions and Actors in Urban Development Planning’ as well as ‘Urban Development Policy, Planning and Management: Strategic Action in Theory and Practice.’
In 1992, an MSc in Social Development Practice (SDP)[6] was started that focused on development from the angles of diversity, well-being, and social equality. Core modules for this degree include ‘Social Policy and Citizenship’ and ‘Inequality and Poverty.’ Many graduates from this program go on to work for specialised social NGOs (concerned with gender, youth, disability, etc.) or for bilateral development agencies as social development specialists.
The MSc in Urban Economic Development (UED) [7] was established in 1993 and seeks to understand and approach city planning/management through economic analysis. Core modules for this masters include ‘Managing the City Economy’ and ‘Practice in Urban Economic Development.’ Graduates from this program may go on to development organizations or return to their home countries to practice, teach, or research urban development there.
In 1995, an MSc in Development Administration and Planning (DAP)[8] was added to the DPU. This degree focuses on the theory and practice of how policy and intervention can be used to resolve development challenges. This is a particularly rigorous masters course with ten core modules, including ‘Industrialisation and Infrastructure,’ Society and Market: Private Agency for Development,’ and ‘Land, Food and Agriculture.’ Graduates from this programme often go into local, regional, and national governments, consultancy firms, United Nations agencies, or international and national non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The MSc in Environment and Sustainable Development (ESD)[9] was launched in 1997 and aims to understand and promote environmental justice in the context of the global south from the angle of socio-environmental change. Optional modules for this masters include ‘Sustainable Infrastructure and Services in Development,’ ‘Urban Water and Sanitation, Planning and Politics,’ and ‘Urban Agriculture.’
The last masters degree added to the DPU was an MSc in Building and Urban Design in Development (BUDD)[10] in 1998. This degree seeks to present a holistic response to urban design challenges through varied analyses. Optional modules for this programme include ‘Housing Policy, Programme and Project Alternatives,’ ‘Disaster Risk Reduction in Cities,’ and ‘Post Disaster Recovery.’
The DPU also offers an MPhil/PhD research programme for Development Planning or Planning Studies. In this course, there is an emphasis on trends in development theory including globalization, privatization, and climate change.
Research[edit]
The DPU aims to initiate research with applications to issues in the global south within the framework and ideals of social justice and sustainability. The duration and endorsement of the unit's research projects are highly variable.
Past research projects led by the DPU include ‘Future Proofing Cities’[3] – to encourage sustainable practices in the process of development – and ‘Shock (Not) Horror’[4] which approaches natural disasters, attacks, and other crises as opportunities for redesigning and strengthening infrastructure to increase resilience and adaptability in the face of future ‘shocks’. The project was undertaken with Atkins and Department for International Development.[5]
Ongoing research endeavors include an examination of the correlation between HIV/AIDS and informal settlements in Sub-Saharan Africa[6] as well as collaborative field research in Nairobi, Kenya about ‘Urban Zoonoses’[7][8] to understand the spread of pathogen emergence by examining urban livestock practices.
The four research clusters, developed by DPU in 2011, are: ‘Environmental justice, urbanisation and resilience’[11], ‘Urban transformations’[12], ‘Diversity, social complexity and planning intervention’[13], and ‘State and Market: governance and policy for development’.[14]
Academic staff[edit]
Current[edit]
- Prof. Julio D Davila, Director
- Prof. Yves Cabannes, Chair of Development Planning
- Dr. Cassidy Johnson, Director of Studies
- Dr. Adriana Allen, Lecturer
- Dr. Camillo Boano, Senior Lecturer
- Dr. Vanesa Castan Broto, Lecturer
- Jorge Fiori, Senior Lecturer
- Dr. Alexandre Apsan Frediani, Lecturer
- Dr. Liza Griffin, Lecturer
- Pascale Hofmann, Lecturer
- Caren Levy, Senior Lecturer
- Dr. Barbara Lipietz, Lecturer
- Dr. Naji Makarem, Lecturer
- Dr. Colin Marx, Lecturer
- Dr. Caroline Newton, Lecturer
- Dr. Kamna Patel, Lecturer
- Etienne Von Bertrab, Lecturer
- Julian Walker, Lecturer
- Dr. Michael Walls, Senior Lecturer
- Dr. Le Yin Zhang, Senior Lecturer
- Prof. David Satterthwaite, Visiting Professor
- Jennifer Cirne, Teaching Fellow
- Dr. David Dodman, Teaching Fellow
- Dr. Zeremarian Fre, Teaching Fellow
- Rita Lambert, Teaching Fellow
- Ruth Mcleod, Teaching Fellow
- James Oporia-Ekwaro, Teaching Fellow
- Dr. Andrea Rigon, Teaching Fellow
- Dr. Robinson Rojas, Teaching Fellow
- Giorgio Talocci, Teaching Fellow
Former[edit]
- Professor Patrick McAuslan, MBE, 1937-2014
Timeline of Directors[edit]
| Director | Years in Position |
|---|---|
| Otto Königsberger | 1971-1977 |
| Colin Rosser | 1977-1982 |
| Nigel Harris | 1982-1989 |
| Patrick Wakely | 1989-2003 |
| Babar Mumtaz | 2003-2005 |
| Caren Levy | 2005-2012 |
| Julio Davila | 2012-present |
See Also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ http://www.aaschool.ac.uk/AALIFE/LIBRARY/aahistory.php
- ↑ http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2812%2960435-8/fulltext
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ http://www.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/research/research-projects/components-past/%20http://research.ncl.ac.uk/shock/
- ↑ "The time is now to future proof our cities". Sustain. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
- ↑ http://www.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/hiv-aids-informal-settlements-in-ssa/
- ↑ http://eehiesei.wordpress.com/
- ↑ [2]
Related Books[edit]
A Guide to Gender-analysis Frameworks, By Candida March, Ines A. Smyth, Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay [15]
Spatial Concerns in Development: A Sri Lankan Perspective, By K. Locana Gunaratna [16]
Namibia and External Resources: The Case of Swedish Development Assistance[17]
External Links[edit]
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