Werner Pfennig, image powered by Pexel
Planning and development committees shape the future of communities. It’s a lot of responsibility for people who largely work behind the scenes, which is why it’s so important that urban planning professionals and developers take their role as community leaders seriously. While the work of planners and developers often goes unappreciated, it influences the livability and character of cities for decades to come.
Grow your leadership skills
Leaders are made, not born. You may have never imagined you’d be a community leader someday, but now that you are, rise to the occasion.
● Communication, facilitation, and creativity are the top competencies for a community leader. Committee members also need project management, research, and analysis skills to make informed planning and development decisions.
● The most efficient way to build leadership skills is online education. An advanced degree provides in-depth training in critical skill areas like organizational management, ethical leadership, and data-driven decision-making.
● For informal learning, take advantage of free resources from top experts in the leadership space. You can find a variety of insightful blogs, training, and other leadership resources at no cost online.
Keep up with urban planning trends
In addition to bolstering leadership skills, it’s vital that members of urban planning and development committees stay up-to-date on industry trends and research.
● UN-Habitat is a leading organization shaping urbanization around the globe. UN-Habitat releases a variety of research and publications to further knowledge in urban planning.
● The Project for Public Spaces explores topics of placemaking through training, events, and publications like their user-friendly guide on designing better public spaces called How to Turn a Place Around.
● In addition to their online trainings, Planetizen updates planning and development professionals on the latest developments in urban planning.
● Prefer to listen to your news? Podcast fans will enjoy tuning into shows like The Urbanist, Invisible City, Third Wave Urbanism, and Design and the City.
Foster tomorrow’s planning leaders
Young people are eager to take an active role in their communities, but they don’t always know where to start.
● Urban planning leaders should work with school districts, library systems, universities, and other local organizations to engage younger residents in urban planning conversations.
● These examples from around the world show the impact young people can have on placemaking, including designing youth-specific spaces and reimagining public spaces in Minecraft.
● The Future Cities Challenge is a great example of a project exciting young people about urban planning. This initiative asked youth and young adults to design the ideal city based on their perspective of what’s important. Check out the winning submissions here.
Planning is more than a profession. It’s a position of leadership and responsibility in your community. Give your best to making places better by developing your skills and knowledge and sharing them with the next generation of community leaders.