Post Conference Report
Conference Programme
The International Centre for Local and Regional Development (ICLRD) held its Seventh Annual Conference on 19-20 January 2012 in the border town of Dundalk, County Louth, attended by 135 delegates and speakers. The conference was organised as part of our CroSPlaN Initiative that is funded by the Special EU Programmes Body under the INTERREG IVA Programme. The theme of this two-day event was Planning for a New Future: Can Planning and Cross-Border Cooperation Deliver Change in Ireland and Europe? Speaker slides and audio files are available for download below and the Post Conference Report is available here.
The island of Ireland faces many challenges due to the severe downturn in the world economy, stagnant development and the legacy of over a decade of sometimes ill-planned development. These challenges have knock-on implications for cross-border cooperation, sustainable development and engaging local authorities, businesses and residents in shaping their communities. The Seventh Annual ICLRD Conference considered models of collaboration across borders and between local government and other key local agencies. Both presenters and delegates alike were asked to identify workable new approaches to planning and the delivery of services. The conference was organised around three main sessions:
- The Collaborative Framework: Cross-Border Regionalism in Action – the role of new regionalism in enhancing cooperation within functional regions.
- Leadership through Planning: Demonstrating Leadership in Achieving the ‘Common Good’ – debating the role of communities, the private sector, and planners in learning from the past and planning a new future.
- Planning the Future: Rethinking the Role of Planning, Governance and Community – bringing together delegates and speakers to consider the role and future of planning and local and regional development and the opportunities and implications of emerging EU agendas on policy and practice.
Welcome Session
| Welcome Address Ms. Caroline Creamer, Deputy Director, ICLRD |  |
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| Opening Address: Planning for a New Future – (En)Visioning a Stronger Role for Planning, Governance and Community Dr. Tim O’Connor, Chairman, ICLRD | |
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| Ms. Jenny Pyper, Deputy Secretary, Urban Regeneration and Community Development, Department for Social Development Northern Ireland | |
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| Data and Evidence-Informed Planning: Profiling New Data Resources for the Island of Ireland – The All-Island Accessibility Mapping Tool and the All-Island Deprivation Index Mr. Justin Gleeson, Project Manager, All-Island Research Observatory (AIRO) | |
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Session 1
The Collaborative Framework: Cross-Border Regionalism in Action
| Welcome by Chair Ms. Maria-Jose Doval-Tedin, National Expert in the European Commission, European Cross-Border Cooperation, DG Regional Policy, European Commission | |
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| Pathways to Managing Regional Growth Prof. Allan Wallis, Associate Professor of Public Policy, School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado, Denver | |
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| Planning on the Island of Ireland: A Changing Landscape Mr. Ciarán M Tracey, F.I.P.I. County Planning Officer | |
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| Ms. Anne Garvey, Acting Deputy Secretary and Head of the Planning Service, Department of Environment Northern Ireland | |
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| Spatial Strategies on the Island of Ireland: Framework for Collaboration – the Practical Opportunities Mr. John Driscoll, Director, ICLRD | |
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| The Role of People in Cross Border Development Mr. Colin Stutt, Colin Stutt Consulting | |
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| Discussion / Q&A | |
Session 2
Leadership through Planning: Demonstrating Leadership in Achieving the ‘Common Good’
| Welcome by Chair Prof. Deborah Peel, Professor of Planning Research and Scholarship, University of Ulster | |
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| The Planner’s Toolkit: Can We Plan for New Tasks Using Existing Processes and Mechanisms? Prof. Karina Pallagst, Department of International Planning Systems, Kaiserslautern University of Technology, Germany (former Director of the ‘Shrinking Cities Program’ at the Center for Global Metropolitan Studies, University of California,Berkeley) | |
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| Reconciling the ‘Common Good’ with Private Development: (Re)Imagining the Role of the Private Sector Ms. Alice Charles, Director, Alice Charles Planning (formerly with Colin Buchanan) | |
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| Planning, the Built Environment and Community: Integrating Insights, Processes and Practices Prof. Mary Corcoran, Department of Sociology, NUI Maynooth | |
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| Discussion / Q&A | |
Session 3
Planning the Future: Rethinking the Role of Planning, Governance and Community
| Opening Remarks Ms. Caroline Creamer, Deputy Director, ICLRD | |
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| Welcome by Chair Ms. Caitriona Mullan, ICLRD Advisory Board | |
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| Planning for a New Future: The Future of Planning and Governance Mr. Vincent Goodstadt, Independent Consultant, Honorary Professor with School of Environment and Development, University of Manchester | |
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| Facilitated Open Discussions: Rethinking the Role of Planning, Governance and Community in Planning for a New Future (with brief synopsis of discussions by Chair) | |
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| Introduction to Closing Address Dr. Tim O’Connor, Chairman, ICLRD | |
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| Closing Address: Inter-Jurisdictional Collaboration in an Era of Austerity Honourable Kelly O’Brien, Chief Operating Officer, Chicagoland Tri-State Metropolitan OECD Review and Advisor to the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce Foundation | |
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