The Future-Making Assessment Approach as a Tool for E-Planning and Community Development

Abstract

As e-planning takes place in a complex and dynamic context, consisting of many stakeholders with a diversity of interests, it benefits from an evaluation approach that assists in the monitoring, supporting and provision of feedback. For this purpose, we have created a new approach to e-planning, called the Future-making assessment. It comprises a framework and a set of tools for the contextual analysis, mobilisation and nurturing of partnerships for collective action, in addition to an on-going monitoring and evaluation system. The aim of this chapter is to present and discuss the methodology of the Future-making assessment-approach (FMA) and its application in a case study on e-planning of services in the context of community development, in a Helsinki neighbourhood.

How to Include Omnichannel Services in Land-Use Policy?

“…Definitions of e-planning range from very broad to very narrow ones. In the broader sense e-planning is a socio-cultural, ethical and political practice, in which people take part in the subsequent phases of the planning process, both directly (offline) and remotely (online) (Horelli & Wallin, 2010). Since it is obvious that planners' are supportive of using ICT in their workplace and that they recognise the benefits of electronic communications, simultaneously they prefer the face-to-face contact to communicate complex issues (Williamson & McFarland, 2012).…”

Exploring E-Planning Practices in Different Contexts

“…The planners and participants can choose the tool and arena that they find most suitable for them (Saad-Sulonen & Horelli 2010;Wallin et al, 2010). However, so far no deeper paradigm shift seems to exist in e-planning and in the ways it relates to citizen participation, but, as we will show in this article, the existing planning and governance context plays a role in shaping the participatory experience.…”

“…First of all, the formal planning will eventually expand to adopt a variety of tools, official and unofficial, expert and mundane, which include digital and non-digital tools (Wallin et al, 2010, Saad-Sulonen, 2012. The new tools that support the practices of "do it yourself" and "do it with others" have the potential to change the route to and timing of participation.…”

“…The longitudinal studies of the application of unofficial e-planning tools in the Finnish context (Horelli & Wallin, 2010;Wallin et al, 2010;Saad-Sulonen, 2012) allow suggesting a few theoretical principles that seem to guide post-positivist, participatory e-planning. First of all, e-planning tends to embed urban spatial planning in the community development and local governance, due to the multi-dimensionality and complexity of the planning process.…”

“…However, variations exist in the different Finnish municipalities. Furthermore, there are several informal projects in Helsinki that bear the features of the New Public Governance approach (Wallin et al, 2010;Botero et al, 2012).…”