The City of Being(s)

About

IFHP Urban Planning and Design Summer School is based on an intensive workshop taking place in a Finnish case study city. The workshop includes hands-on collaboration with diverse actors, such as professional planners, urbanists, stakeholders and activists. This year, we collaborate with Hämeenlinna, a lakeside city in Southern Finland. Working in small groups, the participants make their own analysis and design proposals that answer to real questions emerging from the given site and the context. Students are encouraged to search for unique conceptual approaches and develop those towards a spatial design programme in a semi-realistic manner. In addition to the workshop, the course includes a two-day stay in Helsinki with high-quality lectures and a city tour, a study trip to Tampere and social events. Organised since 1994, the IFHP Urban Planning and Design Summer School in Finland is the oldest summer course in the field of urban planning and design.

Course leader

The summer school is co-organised by Tampere University, School of Architecture, and Aalto University, Land Use Planning and Urban Studies, together with the city of Hämeenlinna and the International Federation for Housing and Planning (IFHP).

Target group

The course is open to students (bachelors, masters and postgraduates) from all disciplines related to spatial planning as well as to young professionals (urban planners, architects, sociologists, geographers and others dealing with the built environment).

Course aim

Our societies are currently facing big environmental and social crises, most notably on climate, biodiversity, social trust and democracy. The need for action is urgent. The solutions should be made on many levels, and rise from locality. Built environment, thus, is an important platform for progressive future’s work. We invite you to locally elaborate ´spaces of hope´: to find alternative futures in place-based practices, local actors and their networks. By doing this, we also explore new roles for architects, planners and other experts and envision new, even surprising agencies and coalitions. How to Rethink Urban Change?

Fee info