Purpose and Contents

To help readers, here we describe the purpose of the textbook and how it is structured as case studies.  The main components of each case study are a case and application.

Purpose of the textbook

The purpose of this textbook is to provide a resource that supports teaching and learning about land use planning in British Columbia.  Its unique strengths are:

• The entire text is grounded in real examples of land use planning;
• The set of six case studies cover a wide range of land use planning contexts:
  • Urban planning
  • Rural planning
  • Natural resource planning
  • First Nations Reserve planning
  • Agricultural land use planning
  • Protected areas planning
• All case study materials are set within British Columbia and its land use planning laws and regulations; and,
• Learners must consider contemporary social, political, economic, and environmental issues;
• All materials designed for assignments (the applications) place learners in the role of professional land use planner who must make and present decisions.

The first chapter introduces the foundations of planning, land use planning, and the planning profession.  The chapter starts with a theoretical understanding of planning, which informs a definition of land use planning.  Through these materials, we set the foundation for analysing the cases and applications.

Overall, our aims are to provide materials that engage learners in familiar contexts, expose learners to the practice of land use planning, and prepare learners for a future as professional land use planners.

This textbook is an excellent complement to such essential texts as Planning Canadian Communities.

Structure of the book

The materials of the textbook are structured as case studies that address one of the six types of land use planning in British Columbia.  The core materials are cases and applications.  As described below, a case is like a story; it sets the context for a land use planning decision.  An application is a situation in which learners must apply their knowledge to a specific field of land use planning.  Learning modules are supplementary materials that provide additional details.  For each case study, learners will examine principles of land use planning, details that inform the situation, and broader societal issues that guide land use decisions.

• Case

Each case presents a story of land use planning in a real context situated in British Columbia.  The aim is to illustrate issues, interests, and challenges that professional planners work with in their regular practices.  As a means to immerse learners in situ, each case is an excellent tool for individual, group, or plenary discussions.

Aspects of each case provide opportunities for more detailed discussion and further research.  Individual elements of a case can be examined in more detail from a historical perspective or additional data can be collected in order to support a more detailed analysis.

• Application

Each case study includes at least one application.  An application is structured as an assignment that can be completed individually or in groups, either in class or as a take-home assignment.

An application places the learner in a real situation in which a land use planning decision is required.  In the role of a professional land use planner, the learner is required to assume the role of an expert and complete a specific task.  As an expert in a particular type of land use planning, the learner assumes a role such as a consultant hired to provide a recommendation or an employee who must present their opinion to a decision-maker.

To make the best decision possible, learners will have to understand the context of the land use planning issue, the nature of the issues, and the options available.  Through these applications, learners will become familiar with the practices of land use planning professionals, and with specific knowledge of land use planning in British Columbia.

Through these application assignments, the task of learners is to build an argument from multiple sources.  The main aim is to focus on and interpret the legislation (and corresponding property rights) that apply.  Rather than a research paper, learners must identify specific elements of the legislative framework that are relevant to substantiate a decision.  The argument should be precise and brief.  This approach can be modified to suit different groups of learners.

Although an application is based on a real situation, the specifics of the assigned task in each application incorporate some creative license in order to place the learner in the role of a decision-maker.

• Learning Modules

A set of learning modules support cases and applications by covering specific aspects of land use planning in more detail.  The modules help to explain particular issues, e.g., Indigenous rights and title, and provide broader context, e.g., strength of farmland protection in Canada.

In this book, learning modules are presented in conjunction with specific cases and applications.  As well, a learning module can be used as a stand-alone resource for discussion and further inquiry.

• Resources

To support further reading and research, each chapter includes a list of resources associated with the case and application(s).

• Updates

As each year passes, the cases and applications get a year older.  Thus far, based on the author’s experience using the materials in this book for teaching an undergraduate land use planning course, the subject matter of the cases and applications remain relevant to land use planning and effective as teaching resources.  For some case studies, the cases and applications have been updated to ensure the issues are embedded in current issues and legislation.  In addition, to supplement the cases and applications, each chapter includes an update on major developments.  These updates are revised on an annual basis (which is a specific advantage of a digital book).  Updates are available from the instructor.