The distinguished German planner, Professor Klaus Kunzmann, shares his thoughts on what the Covid19 crisis means for Europe, China, places and planning.

A paper in a leading scientific journal calls for much greater engagement of scientists in urban policy and practice.

Today at the World Urban Forum in Kuala Lumpur I went into three events, which spanned a wide range of themes and places.Each in its own way provoked thoughts.

Earlier this week I was honoured to receive the OBE for services to planning, at an investiture at Buckingham Palace.

The Habitat 3 conference in Quito this month is a critical opportunity to shape the practice of planning globally.

China's slowing growth and rising debts have sent tremors through global markets. Urbanisation has been integral to the near double digit annual growth over recent years, so what does the slow down mean for regional and local development within China, and in particular for the local authorities?

We are building cities to attract investment, not cities for people to live in, argued David Harvey, the distinguished geographer, speaking in Montevideo.

Here is a "Diary" article that I wrote inspired by my participation in the second Habitat UN summit in 1996, when I was there representing RTPI as President.

Sri Lanka is planning to develop a "megapolis" based on Colombo to boost its economy and compete with other South Asian nations.

A wide ranging international review of national urban policies highlights the importance to national development of coordinated planning and well-functioning urban areas. Urban planning is seen as an economic imperative. "The argument
that well-functioning urban areas can help to unleash the development potential of nations is more persuasive than the argument that urban policy is about alleviating poverty and meeting basic needs", says the report.