Peter Ache — Netherlands

Abstract

In this brief national report, Peter Ache outlines the current status and key challenges of spatial planning in the Netherlands. The text touches upon planning's public reputation, legal reforms, dominant public themes, the relationship between theory and practice, the role of planning education, and the influence of the European Union. Ache highlights the centrality of water management, the emphasis on maintaining “spatial quality,” and the increasing attention paid by the planning community to social disparities and managerial aspects of planning. He concludes by emphasising the need for experimentation, shared learning, and capacity-building through interdisciplinary approaches.