Adaptive planning and the capacity to perform in moments of change

Change occurs at all times. However, current changes are accompanied by an unprecedented dynamism and complexity. It is a consequence of an enormous and increasing rate at which new developments emerge, developments with a global nature that are also completely interwoven with the local environment, such as the internet, social media, economic uncertainty and the energy transition. The interconnectedness of these processes is only increasing, and their dynamics have an unstoppable effect on almost everything. Societal processes are part of a dynamism in which connections that are deemed relevant, the intended approaches and the targeted processes that were embraced yesterday and still feel familiar today, could very well be entirely outdated by tomorrow. These are the circumstances that spatial planning is confronted with. Planning can no longer afford to ignore fundamental uncertainties. Key is how planning can relate to change in a way that is different from before. Adaptivity is often mentioned as the answer to increasing uncertainty, societal dynamism and spatial transformation. It is then about the way in which planning is able to respond to unforeseen, autonomous or spontaneously occurring changes (acting in response to change), the way in which planning is able to influence such changes (addressing the possibility to change) and how planning may increase the options for dealing with change (capacity to perform in moments of change). Based on this distinction, various forms of adaptive planning will be presented that together offer a world of planning opportunities.