Governance networks and complexity of territorial planning

Abstract

Governance networks have emerged in response to the increasing complexity of public affairs, and because of the deficiencies of traditional public management models. In relation to this, territorial planning, as a basic instrumental technique for the implementation of territorial and urban policies, has also experienced an increase in complexity. The aim of the article is to defend the interest that governance networks have for territorial decision-making in a stage of increasing complexity. In this way, the interest of the work is in the interrelation that exists between governance networks and territorial planning, an issue rarely addressed in the litera ture so far. From this approach, it is considered that decisions in territorial planning should be the product of a combination of expert knowledge and that of the actors with interests in the territory. Thus, territorial planning should serve as an instrumental technique to manage the coexistence of shared spaces, develop collaborative territorial policies and, ultimately, to promote territorial culture.