Christa Reicher Book order

Focusing on urban development, this textbook serves as a guide for aspiring architects and planners, emphasizing practical design processes within a theoretical framework. It includes expanded chapters on informal urban planning and regional development, providing a comprehensive overview of urban structures and their governing laws. The "layer method" is utilized to simplify the complex nature of cities, breaking them into manageable components. Real-world examples of projects and competitions enhance the understanding of the design phases involved in urban planning.

Worldwide, cities and regions are affected by structural change and face comprehensive transformation processes, many of which are yet to reveal themselves. In this context, polycentric models for development have been internationally voiced. ôPolycentric City Regions in Transformation: The Ruhr Agglomeration in International Perspectiveö discusses such models in a comparative manner and, in particular, focuses on the dynamics that shape and challenge cities and regions nowadays. The book compiles contributions from Germany, China, Canada, Portugal, Colombia, USA, Scotland, among others, which were presented in an international conference held at Essen Zollverein in June 2015.

In the context of Transforming City Regions, phenomena such as globalization and digitalization accelerate change and bring several aspects of life into motion. If used in a smart way, such developments might trigger a promising dynamic for local people, their living environment, and regional economy. The book reflects on the challenges such dynamics encompass and also on the significance of social integration in urban contexts. The book compiles contributions from researchers and practitioners.

Sustainable Planning needs dialogue – not only between sectoral departments and among stakeholders, but between spaces, between citizens and politicians, between different needs and development goals. In today´s globalised world dialogue becomes more important. The publication results from a cooperation project between planners from Germany and the Middle East. It emphasizes the role and significance of historic city centres in both cultural contexts. The comparison between European and Arabic experiences means active dialogue between both planning cultures.

“The IBA Emscher Park, held at the centre of Germany’s largest industrial region, tried to find a way to transform a unique region that had been permanently marked and marred by industrial history and open up a new future for it, all within the space of ten years.“ The international building exhibitions held in Germany since the beginning of the 20th century have presented exemplary architectural and urban planning projects to an interested public. The Emscher Park International Building Exhibition (IBA Emscher Park) was held in the Ruhr area over a ten-year period from 1989 to 1999 and changed the face of the region. 19 cities and municipalities and a range of initiatives and companies planned and implemented over 100 projects of varying sizes. Some of these projects enjoyed popular appeal in the media and still stand today as examples of successful structural change achieved in the public interest, while others were “quieter” and affected their environment through smaller interventions. This book documents the IBA Emscher Park projects, presenting their evolution since 1999 as well as their current development status using images, maps and texts.