This thesis explores the contention that planning is a moral activity concerned with the way in which people live in relation to nature or the environment. It suggests that planning is the moral framework by which communities and individuals confront their relationship with nature or the environment. It argues that certain disciplines such as town planning, resource management, environmental ethics, aspects of theology and of art are but isolated and narrowed aspects of a wider activity of planning. The rationale for embarking on such a discussion of planning relies in part on the observation that when modern planners take a more contemplative approach to their craft, they have often been perplexed about their frequent failure to deliver the good they assumed that planning set out to achieve. It is suggested that this intent to achieve good is inherent to planning and that it is a moral concern. Planning, under this analysis, is part of the wider realm of moral philosophy and decision-making - that is undertaken by all people. Planning extends beyond mere moral discourse to encompass a number of mechanisms that bind individuals and communities to the moral norms they have adopted. These mechanisms, one of which is the key institution of property rights, are also affected by ideas that change over time; they exist in a dynamic interrelationship with both planning discourse (debates about moral structures and norms) and planning codes (norms adopted by individuals and communities as standards for action). This thesis takes this broad interpretation of planning and considers it in relation to four periods in planning history. In doing so, a number of themes are identified in relation to the role of planners, the decision-making structures of planning and the nature of planning discourse. These themes are considered in relation to the way Maori planning systems have developed in New Zealand since European settlement. They are also considered in terms of whether it is possible to identify certain universal moral rules within planning and whether there are certain tasks that all planners must address. / Whole document restricted, but available by request, use the feedback form to request access.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/278680 |
| Date | January 1999 |
| Creators | Ferguson, Gael, 1959- |
| Publisher | ResearchSpace@Auckland |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | Whole document restricted but available by request. Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated., http://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm, Copyright: The author |
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