ISOCARP facts for kids
The International Society of City and Regional Planners (ISOCARP) is a worldwide group of expert city and regional planners. These are people who help design and organize cities and towns to make them better places for everyone.
ISOCARP was started in 1965. Its first president was Professor Sam van Embden. Today, ISOCARP connects members from over 90 countries around the world. Pietro Elisei is the current president, working with 11 other leaders. Their main office is in The Hague, Netherlands. ISOCARP also works closely with big international organizations like the United Nations and UNESCO.
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What ISOCARP Does
ISOCARP's main goal is to make cities better. They do this by helping city planners from different countries share their ideas and learn from each other. They offer training, education, and support for planners.
ISOCARP also wants more people to understand how important city planning is. They organize many activities to achieve this. These include a big yearly meeting called the World Planning Congress. They also publish books, give awards for great planning ideas, and run special training programs.
In 2016, ISOCARP started a special research group called the "Centre for Urban Excellence." This group acts like a "think tank" for cities. Its goals are to help people work together across borders. It also aims to improve planning skills and promote sustainable ways to build cities. This group helps everyone learn about new trends and good practices in city development.
The World Planning Congress
Since 1965, the most important event for ISOCARP has been its yearly World Planning Congress. These congresses happen in different cities around the world. Each year, they focus on a new and important topic about cities and planning.
| Nr. | Year | Location | Theme |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1965 |  Amsterdam |
The Position of the Netherlands in a Uniting Europe |
| 37th | 2001 | Utrecht |
Planning in the Information Age |
| 38th | 2002 |  Athens |
The Pulsar Effect: Urban Planning and the pulsar effect: Coping with peaks, troughs and repeats in the demand cycle |
| 39th | 2003 |  Cairo |
Planning in a More Globalised and Competitive World |
| 40th | 2004 |  Geneva |
Management of Urban Regions - Experiences and New Interventions Possibilities |
| 41st | 2005 |  Bilbao |
Making Spaces for the Creative Economy |
| 42nd | 2006 |  Istanbul |
Cities between Integration and Disintegration – Opportunities and Challenges |
| 43rd | 2007 |  Antwerp |
Urban Trialogues. Co-productive ways to relate visioning and strategic urban projects |
| 44th | 2008 |  Dalian |
Urban Growth without Sprawl – A way Towards Sustainable Urbanization |
| 45th | 2009 |  Porto |
Low Carbon Cities |
| 46th | 2010 |  Nairobi |
Sustainable City / Developing World |
| 47th | 2011 | Wuhan |
Liveable Cities: Urbanising World - Meeting the challenge |
| 48th | 2012 |  Perm |
Fast Forward: Planning in a (hyper) dynamic urban context |
| 49th | 2013 |  Brisbane |
Frontiers of Planning – Evolving and declining models of city planning practice |
| 50th | 2014 |  Gdynia |
Urban Transformations – Cities and Water |
| 51st | 2015 | Rotterdam |
Cities Save the World: Let's Reinvent Planning |
| 52nd | 2016 |  Durban |
Cities we Have vs Cities we Need |
| 53rd | 2017 |  Portland |
Smart Communities |
| 54th | 2018 |  Bodø |
Cool Planning: Changing Climate and Our Urban Future |
| 55th | 2019 |  Jakarta, Bogor |
Beyond the Metropolis |
| 56th | 2020 |  Doha (online) |
Post-Oil City: Planning for Urban Green Deals |
| 57th | 2021 | Doha (hybrid) |
Planning Unlocked: New times, Better places, Stronger Communities |
| 58th | 2022 | Brussels | From Wealthy to Healthy Cities |
| 59th | 2023 | Toronto | For Climate Action, Urban Finance |
Other Important Activities
Besides the big annual congress, ISOCARP runs other helpful programs.
Young Planning Professionals (YPP) Workshops
These workshops are for young planners under 35 years old. They help these new professionals learn how to solve planning problems in different countries.
Urban Planning Advisory Teams (UPATs)
UPATs are special teams of ISOCARP experts. They offer their knowledge to cities and regions around the world. These teams help with big planning projects and new ideas for city policies. Past workshops and UPAT projects have taken place in places like Russia, China, Australia, Mexico, Kenya, Gaza and the West Bank.
See also
In Spanish: Asociación Internacional de Urbanistas para niños
