Vitalizing Planning for a Neo-Welfare State: A Suggestion Based on Swedish Experiences

摘要

Planning in Sweden is intimately connected with the welfare state, whose ethos and methods are in crisis. The aim of this article is a) to bring in and accommodate new postmodern theories to the planning context in Sweden and b) to examine how the planning profession in Sweden in line with these theories can adapt to the radical societal and theoretical changes of the last decades. It is argued that the current planning role needs to be complemented with a new "proactive " kind of planning, ensuring that the voices and needs of vulnerable groups are heard.