ARTICLES by Martijn Duineveld
Many of contemporary issues, like urban development, climate change, biodiversity conservation, o... more Many of contemporary issues, like urban development, climate change, biodiversity conservation, or food security, demand for interdisciplinary approaches that bring together scientist with different ideas about reality and the nature of knowledge. Whereas some focus on the material reality of our world, other focus on the social structures through which humans construct an understanding of that world. This paper presents a framework for going beyond the traditional dichotomy between discourse and materiality. Drawing on the work of one of the most influential sociologists, Niklas Luhmann, it explores the different ways in which materiality can relate to discursive dynamics. Five different events are distinguished: silent, whispering, vigorous, fading and deadly events. These events constitute the spectrum in which changes in the environment affect communication and action. This typology helps to better understand the diversity of societal responses to an ever changing environment.
Een deel van de Nederlandse landschappen is ontworpen door landschapsarchitecten. Landschapsvormi... more Een deel van de Nederlandse landschappen is ontworpen door landschapsarchitecten. Landschapsvorming is echter niet de enige functie van het ontwerp, betogen we in dit artikel. In een participatief ontwerp proces voor het Europaplein in Renkum bestudeerden we de verschillende functies van ontwerpen. Ondanks het feit dat die kunnen conflicteren, blijken ze op verschillende wijze een zeer productieve bijdrage te leveren aan het verloop van het proces.
Based on a detailed reconstruction of the planning process of a controversial major building in t... more Based on a detailed reconstruction of the planning process of a controversial major building in the Dutch city of Groningen, we develop a theoretical and conceptual framework for studying object formation and stabilisation. We argue that the many forms of resistance against the object itself triggered a variety of counter-strategies of object formation. We make a distinction between sites, paths and techniques of object formation. To study object formation in more detail we distinguish three techniques: reification, solidification and codification. The techniques of object formation are accompanied by three techniques that produce a relative stability of the object, that increases its irreversibility, the likelihood of object survival: objectification, naturalisation and institutionalisation. We conclude that complete irreversibility is an illusion in governance and planning processes.
In this paper, we analyze praxis/ theory entanglements in contemporary discourse on transitionman... more In this paper, we analyze praxis/ theory entanglements in contemporary discourse on transitionmanagement, as exemplified by the Netherlands. We argue that modernist notions of steering pervadethe governance system, overestimating the role of governmental actors and underestimating othersources of innovation and systemic innovation that could be labeled ‘transition’. We argue that in thispolicy environment, transitions management theories emerged and were embraced that reinforcedflawed notions of social engineering, both in science and in governance. We develop a theoreticalframework, partly deriving from the social systems theory of Niklas Luhmann, to grasp the paradoxes of current notions of transition management, and to outline an alternative approach. A renewed reflectionon innovation we deem essential for an understanding of the potential for transition management, fordelineating the limits and possibilities of steering in such endeavor. Innovation, it is argued, has to beunderstood as a post- hoc interpretation of previous decisions and actions, emerging in shifting networksof actors and allies. It is a risky and unpredictable operation at the intersection of incompatibleunderstandings of the world. Transition management, then, has to be understood as the creation of conditions for reflection, including the reflection on the redistribution of risks engendered byinnovation.
Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 2014
In this paper we analyse the role and reception of poststructuralist perspectives on power in pla... more In this paper we analyse the role and reception of poststructuralist perspectives on power in planning since the 1990s, and then ask whether a renewed encounter with the works of poststructuralist theorists Foucault, Deleuze, and Luhmann could add something to the points that were already made. We make a distinction between the power of planning (the impact in society), power in planning (relations between players active in planning), and power on planning (the influence of broader society on the planning system), to refine the analysis of planning/power. It is argued that an interpretation of Deleuze, Luhmann, and Foucault, as thinkers of power in a theoretical framework that is based on the idea of contingency, can help to refine the analysis of power in planning. Planning then can be regarded as a system in other systems, with roles, values, procedures, and materialities in constant transformation, with the results of each operation serving as input for the next one. The different power relations constitute the possibilities, the forms, and the potential impact of planning.
Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning, 2011
In this paper we analyse the successful local/regional opposition to a proposed new town north of... more In this paper we analyse the successful local/regional opposition to a proposed new town north of the Dutch city Leiden in terms of pathways, sites and techniques of object formation. In the struggle over spatial plans and policies, new objects are constructed and played out. In some cases, the new objects became institutionalized and codified future development in the region. We focus on the strategic role of the construction of heritage and nature in the planning process, concepts utilized by opponents of the urban plans. Revisiting Foucault's concepts of power/knowledge and discourse, we present a detailed analysis of the process of emergence, solidifying and institutional embedding of new forms of heritage and nature as new discursive objects. We argue that such a retour à Foucault is important, allowing for an elucidation of object formation, still understudied in planning and governance studies.
19 July 2009. A barn burns down in a small Dutch town. Afterwards, this invisible and insignifica... more 19 July 2009. A barn burns down in a small Dutch town. Afterwards, this invisible and insignificant ‘barn’ became widely known as ‘Barrack 57’. The destruction triggered attention and led to the barn’s association with a Nazi Second World War transit camp and with Anne Frank. Its material destruction made this barn/barrack both present and absent in various networks. We use the case of Barrack 57 to study the interplay between presence/absence and non-existence of objects in these networks, an exercise which connects to and contributes to the development of constructivist perspectives on object formation in heritage studies. Our analysis of presence/absence and non-existence therefore is based on different concepts developed in actor network theory and Niklas Luhmann’s theory of social systems. Of particular importance is Luhmann’s distinction between first- and second-order observation. We argue that heritage objects themselves are the result of different enactments of (non) human properties in various relational configurations. With this view, a new task for critical heritage scholars emerges. Understanding the dynamics of presence/absence and non-existence of heritage objects in different networks deepens insight into the broader issues of the formation of heritage objects and their delineating technologies and the policies of normalisation and naturalisation.
International Planning Studies, 2010
The link between European environmental policies and spatial planning and decision-making in Memb... more The link between European environmental policies and spatial planning and decision-making in Member States is complicated and the subject of much debate among students of the European Union and the processes of Europeanization. This paper focus on policy meaning, and analyses the mechanisms of divergence and convergence that are at work in planning and decision-making practices in which the Birds and Habitats Directives are implemented. While many of the mechanisms are unconscious and unintentional and thus cannot be affected, others can be used intentional and strategically during the formulation and implementation of the policies.
Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning, 2011
In this paper, we adopt a Foucauldian perspective on power/knowledge interactions to investigate ... more In this paper, we adopt a Foucauldian perspective on power/knowledge interactions to investigate the evolution and implementation of policy for the Romanian Danube delta. We argue that a better understanding of the potential for citizen participation in environmental governance can be obtained from a careful analysis of the pathways of emergence, enactment and implementation of policies affecting an area. Policies are seen as temporary conceptual structures coordinating knowledge and power, in constant transmutation because of the confrontation with other power/knowledge configurations. For the Danube delta, it is argued that policies originating at various levels of government co-create a ‘local’ that is scrutinized, silenced, exoticized, subjugated and marginalized. Finally, we investigate the implications of this and similar processes of delineation of actors for participatory natural resource governance.
This paper revisits the potential contribution of semiotic analysis to heritage design. A case st... more This paper revisits the potential contribution of semiotic analysis to heritage design. A case study analyzes lay interpretations of a number of urban landscape designs, displaying different ways to refer to the invisible (archaeological) past. A total of 12 draft designs were produced referring to the past of three sites on the fringe of the Dutch city of Almere, and the various design options were discussed during in-depth interviews. A semiotic framework made it possible to grasp the structure and process of interpretation of the plans and their embedded historical references. It is demonstrated that categories of place routinely override categories of time in the interpretation of a historical reference and that designs (and therefore references) steeped in design tradition, or, more broadly, artistic tradition, are rarely understood by the potential users. Further, the study shows that the interplay of spatial, temporal and cultural context does not allow for an ideal strategy of historical reference, a design strategy that would work in every setting. Designing with heritage cannot be decoupled from context.
European Planning Studies, 2012
In this paper, we investigate the influence of speedy reform in a transitional country on the rei... more In this paper, we investigate the influence of speedy reform in a transitional country on the reinvention of spatial planning. For the country of Georgia, we briefly outline the evolution of the planning system since communism, and then analyse through two case studies how the specific transitional pathway of Georgia manifests itself in the reorganization of spatial governance in city (Tbilisi) and natural areas (Borjomi). It is argued that role formation and transformation play a crucial role in such processes, roles being catalysts and modifiers of further reform. We analyse and argue that the mixed results of reform speed and re-centralization of power enable fast change of formal institutions but simultaneously raise obstacles for the crystallization of roles necessary to implement those formal reforms. Our analysis incorporates key concepts derived from institutional economics (in the line of Douglass North) and social systems theory, in Niklas Luhmann's version.‡
International Journal of Heritage Studies, 2011
In this article, we present a perspective on the interaction between formal and informal institut... more In this article, we present a perspective on the interaction between formal and informal institutions in spatial planning in which they transform each other continuously, in processes that can be described and analyzed as ongoing reinterpretations. The effects of configurations and dialectics are often ambiguous, only partially observable, different in different domains and at different times. By means of analyses of key concepts in planning theory and practice, this perspective is illustrated and developed. Finally, we analyze transformation options in planning systems, emphasizing the limits of formal institutions in transforming formal/informal configurations, and stressing the importance of judgment and conflict.
Land Use Policy, Jan 1, 2012
On the potential contributions of design approaches to the coordination of spatial organization..... more On the potential contributions of design approaches to the coordination of spatial organization...
We develop an evolutionary perspective on spatial planning to investigate the potential contributions of design approaches to the coordination of spatial organization. After a re-articulation of the concepts of planning and design in this perspective, we distinguish six essential features of the planning/design dialectics in a community. These aspects ought to be understood when evaluating the risks and benefits of design perspectives in a planning system, and the potential for re-positioning design in planning. It is argued that relying on the rhetoric of any single actor or any single tradition of reflection on planning and design is deceptive, whereas the collective experience of learning and adaptation with actors and disciplines expands the scope of understanding and the pallet of possible adaptations.
In this paper, we investigate the influence of speedy reform in a transitional country on the rei... more In this paper, we investigate the influence of speedy reform in a transitional country on the reinvention of spatial planning. For the country of Georgia, we briefly outline the evolution of the planning system since communism, and then analyse through two case studies how the specific transitional pathway of Georgia manifests itself in the reorganization of spatial governance in city (Tbilisi) and natural areas (Borjomi). It is argued that role formation and transformation play a crucial role in such processes, roles being catalysts and modifiers of further reform. We analyse and argue that the mixed results of reform speed and re-centralization of power enable fast change of formal institutions but simultaneously raise obstacles for the crystallization of roles necessary to implement those formal reforms. Our analysis incorporates key concepts derived from institutional economics (in the line of Douglass North) and social systems theory, in Niklas Luhmann's version.
Uploads
ARTICLES by Martijn Duineveld
We develop an evolutionary perspective on spatial planning to investigate the potential contributions of design approaches to the coordination of spatial organization. After a re-articulation of the concepts of planning and design in this perspective, we distinguish six essential features of the planning/design dialectics in a community. These aspects ought to be understood when evaluating the risks and benefits of design perspectives in a planning system, and the potential for re-positioning design in planning. It is argued that relying on the rhetoric of any single actor or any single tradition of reflection on planning and design is deceptive, whereas the collective experience of learning and adaptation with actors and disciplines expands the scope of understanding and the pallet of possible adaptations.
We develop an evolutionary perspective on spatial planning to investigate the potential contributions of design approaches to the coordination of spatial organization. After a re-articulation of the concepts of planning and design in this perspective, we distinguish six essential features of the planning/design dialectics in a community. These aspects ought to be understood when evaluating the risks and benefits of design perspectives in a planning system, and the potential for re-positioning design in planning. It is argued that relying on the rhetoric of any single actor or any single tradition of reflection on planning and design is deceptive, whereas the collective experience of learning and adaptation with actors and disciplines expands the scope of understanding and the pallet of possible adaptations.
The book bridges the gap between more fundamental and philosophical accounts of the social sciences and applied studies, offering theoretical advancement as well as practical recommendations.
durable?
Michel Foucault: Bien sur!
Martijn Duineveld: Mais pourquoi est-ce qu’on ne lit pas ça dans la littérature sur les transitions?
Michel Foucault: Une belle question a laquelle on peut répondre plusieurs choses. Disons premièrement que...
How wonderful it would be to have the philosopher most cited within the social sciences, MichelFoucault,shedlightonthestilllargelyDutchphenomenonof‘transitionmanagement’. This would undoubtedly provide us with an exquisite example of intellectual fireworks. Sadly, Foucault died of AIDS in 1984. So we have no choice but to do the job ourselves. In order to do so we will link our interpretation of his work with the field of transition management (Kemp et al., 2007; Duineveld et al., 2009). We bypass his early (Foucault, 2001, 1973, 1969) and late work (Foucault, 1985, 1986) and base this chapter primarily on Foucault (2004, 2003, 1998 and 1994a). We also use secondary literature like Flyvbjerg and Richardson (2002), Flyvbjerg (1998a), McHoul and Grace, (1995), Van Assche (2004) and Gutting (1994, 1989). These texts are used pragmatically; that is to say, we do not attempt to make a connection with the schools of thought that were of influence on Foucault’s thinking, such as Marxism, structuralism and analytical philosophy. Neither do we enter into the (philosophical) movements he opposed, such as phenomenology and existentialism. Instead, we use his texts as a toolkit, as an initial impetus for deriving a number of theories, concepts and ideas that can help us to describe, analyse and understand transition practices.
This chapter introduces a number of concepts from Niklas Luhmann’s social systems theory as they relate to innovation, transition and transition management. An understanding of Luhmann’s ideas on innovation and steering is essential to grasp a Luhmannian view of system innovation and transition management. Two levels of analysis are developed. The first level centres on the political system, pushing innovation and trying to manage transition, while the second level focuses on organisations and their attempts to innovate. Luhmann is eminently useful in relating the two levels and thus in laying the groundwork for a theory of innovation and transition. An analysis of the development of Dutch discourse on systems innovation, social engineering and transition management since the 1990s serves to illustrate and apply the social systems perspective. Finally, the chapter argues that modernist notions of steering pervading the governance system overestimate the role of governmental actors and underestimate other sources of innovation and systemic innovation that could be labelled ‘transition’.
Niklas Luhmann (1927-1998) has been described as the greatest social scientist of the 20th century, but many of his concepts have been remarkably unexplored and left without much application. One of the fields in which his insights did gain influence is in organisation and management theory. The following analysis of innovation and transition owes a debt to the work conducted in that particular field of application (e.g. Seidl, 2005; Hernes and Backen, 2002; Teubner, 1996; Fuchs, 2001), allowing for a smoother transition from grand theory to analyses of practice.
Luhmann perceived society as a collection of interacting social systems, and he saw social systems as systems of communication. Each social system creates its own reality through communication, based on specific distinctions and specific modes of reproduction. Systems are operationally closed: everything happens in system conditions, according to the logic of the system. Observations of environments use the logic and semantics of the system itself. And the influence
of the environment is only indirect, through interpretation.
als appeltaart. We presenteren u een essay over de fundamenten van democratie in een
veranderende samenleving. Een samenleving die misschien wel gaat drijven op burgerinitiatief
in al zijn verscheidenheid en onhebbelijkheid. We hadden kunnen kiezen voor een Jules
Verne of George Orwell achtige benadering. Maar we geloven niet in utopieën en ook niet in
dystopieën. Daarom richtten we dit essay tegen de anonieme overheid die samen met haar
planners bepaalt wat rationeel te verkiezen is als mogelijke toekomst van mens en maatschappij.
In die visie mogen burgers soms participeren, met name als legitimatie daarom
vraagt. Wij draaien het liever om, laat burgers bepalen wat goed voor hen is en laat dan de
overheid participeren en interveniëren, slechts als dat nodig is. De ruimtelijke planners onder
u hebben niets te vrezen. We houden van plannen, planners en hun ongekende en ongecontroleerde
repercussies in de samenleving. Maar voor wie de schoen past: denk eens na over
pantoffels. Dit essay is geschreven als statement naast alle feitelijke en verhelderende studies
over burgerinitiatieven die eerder in deze reeks verschenen en nog zullen verschijnen. In een
dialoog aan het einde van het essay maken we de (beleids)dilemma’s helder waar soms wel
en soms nog geen oplossingen voor zijn. We hopen en verheugen ons op felle en liefst emotionele
discussies, want dan gaat het ergens over…
De auteurs
In dit artikel laten we ziet dat de ‘bollenvogel’ het resultaat is van de acties van burgers in het verzet tegen woningbouwplannen.
By doing so they not only show more accurately how planning really works, they also deconstruct many of the dominant modernist theories, concepts and ideas still present within the planning discipline. One would expect that the planning discipline, in parallel with other disciplines like anthropology, policy studies and cultural studies, would undergo a major change towards a more analytical and post-modern approach.
Although this seems to be the case at some European Universities, where scientists like Flyvbjerg, Hillier and Allmendinger, seem to become increasingly influential, generally speaking Northern European planners, also in the Dutch planning paradise, tend to cling to the modernist discourse, dominant in planning disciplines and institutions. It is produced and reproduced, seemingly unaffected by the upcoming post-modern frame of thought. In this article we will describe the problems that originate from that modernist discourse and we will elaborate on the need for a post-modern approach of planning.
A post-modern scientific look at the planning system reveals the presence of images of self and the outer world that are far from realistic and far form democratic. Consequently there is a real need for change. Next we will make explicit the constraints, power relations and attitudes, which constitute obstacles for change. Making these obstacles explicit is not only a way to critically reflect on planning approaches within the Dutch and Northern European academic context.
An analysis of the obstacles for change is simultaneously an analysis of the reproductive mechanisms of the planning discourse and an analysis of the gradual breakdown of the democratic character of planning. A shift from a modern to a post-modern planning approach is therefore not only an academic challenge, but also a struggle for new forms of democratic legitimacy