Grounded futures: A decade of planning through humanitarian and Southern lenses

Abstract

This reflective article marks the tenth anniversary of plaNext – Next Generation Planning and traces the journal’s evolution as a platform for critical spatial planning discourse, particularly in humanitarian and Global South contexts. Drawing on the author’s dual experience as an editor and practitioner, the piece examines how plaNext has contributed to reshaping planning debates around inclusion, ethics, contextual sensitivity, and interdisciplinary practice. Focusing on Volumes 9, 10, and 11, the article highlights how planning can serve as a transformative tool in crisis-affected environments—centering community agency, participatory methods, and reparative, care-based approaches. It brings together lessons from interdisciplinary scholarship, grassroots initiatives, and non-Western ethical frameworks such as ubuntu, ahimsa, and Indigenous relational ethics. The article calls for bridging academic and humanitarian spheres, advocating for planning practices rooted in justice, resilience, relational well-being, and grounded futures shaped by the needs and voices of affected communities.