A message from the President

Welcome to the Commonwealth Association of Planners' (CAP) website. CAP is a major global institution in planning and is playing an increasingly significant role in the worldwide promotion of planning as a fundamental part of governance for sustainable human settlement. It represents planning associations from the Commonwealth, which includes many African, Asian and the Caribbean countries, and supports the CAP Women in Planning network. It plays the leading role in developing planning and planners throughout the countries of the Commonwealth. The strengthening of planning throughout the Commonwealth as a means of making settlements more sustainable, remains the primary focus of this association.

CAP works closely with other key stakeholders, such as UN Habitat, other Commonwealth professional associations and ComHabitat, and planning associations from beyond the Commonwealth, in promoting planning as essential to sustainable development. The importance of CAP's role, and of the interaction with planning groups on a global scale, can be seen from the outcomes of the World Planners Congress and World Urban Forum III, held in June 2006 in Vancouver. CAP worked with United Nations Habitat, the American Planning Association, the Royal Town Planning Institute, and the Canadian Institute of Planners, in formulating a critical submission to the World Planners Congress and the World Urban Forum III. This has been taken forward through a Global Planners Network (www.globalplannersnetwork.org).

Underpinning this initiative, was a realisation of the urgent need to change perceptions about planning, and to promote planning, to ensure that urban growth and change is managed in sustainable ways. This is especially critical given the rapid rates of urbanisation, and the urbanisation of poverty, being experienced across the globe, and particularly in many countries of the Commonwealth.  A paper entitled "Reinventing Planning", which set out 10 key principles for "New Urban Planning" was prepared, and was presented at both forums. In addition, the Vancouver Declaration was signed by representatives of 17 national planning bodies from around the world, including many from the Commonwealth, committing these countries to being part of this initiative to promote "New Urban Planning" and to focusing planning on the critical issues around urbanisation and poverty. In addition, CAP supported the preparation of a booklet, "Making Planning Work" that was launched at the World Urban Forum. This publication explains what can be done to grow skills and capacity to address these urgent issues. Copies of these documents, and information regarding the "Making Planning Work" publication, can be found on this website

The task now is to translate these steps into a lasting impact on the management of urban change. The dialogue session on "The Shape of Cities : Urban Planning and Management " at the World Urban Forum attracted a full house, and the delegates heard presentations on "New Urban Planning" as set out in the "Reinventing Planning" paper. They heard also the support of the planning fraternity and of civil society organisations, from around the world, for this crucial initiative, as witnessed by the signing of the Vancouver Declaration. There was a clear consensus that the challenges of urbanisation across the globe cannot be ignored, and that urban planning is critical for the management of urban change. In short, you cannot have sustainable development without planning.

The official UN Habitat report on the World Urban Forum lists planning as one of four headline issues, and states the following: "The Forum stressed the important role of planners as agents of change and underlined the importance of sustainability as the backbone of new forms of planning."

The exceptionally positive outcomes of the World Urban Forum in Vancouver mean that there is now an onus on the planners of the world to respond. We have to ensure that this opportunity to reposition the profession globally is not lost. The inclusion of planning as one of the four headline issues coming out of WUF means that the role of planners as agents of change has been acknowledged at the highest levels. After a long period when planning was seen by governments and aid agencies as an irrelevance, and by the poor as a threat to their homes and livelihoods, planning and the role of planners are now firmly and positively on the international agenda. Planners now have to show that they can help to deliver pro-poor urban change.

Over the next two years, CAP will be focusing attention on strengthening the CAP regions, as a way to build capacity amongst planners throughout the Commonwealth, to ensure that we can respond to the challenges which have been laid at our door. This will include building national associations and membership within the regions, supporting regional events, and disseminating the Reinventing Planning paper, the Vancouver Declaration, and the "Making Planning Work" publication. Another important issue, which has been placed on the CAP agenda, is to explore current professional planning education systems to address their contribution to capacity building in planning throughout the Commonwealth. This examination will also provide important input into a related - and complex - issue on the CAP agenda, namely exploring the possibility of mutual recognition of qualifications of Commonwealth Planners.  

I must also pay tribute to the members of CAP who have played a pivotal role in bringing CAP to the point where it enjoys such a high profile within the Commonwealth, as well as on the world stage. Since 2000 Annette O'Donnell has provided an efficient and responsive administrative base on which CAP has been able to build its activities and profile. The Secretary - General of CAP, Professor Cliff Hague, in his previous capacity as President of CAP, was instrumental in building CAP into the strong Association it now is, and in placing CAP firmly on the world stage in many different ways, not least through delivering the positive outcomes of the World Urban Forum. His leadership and contribution has been exceptional, and we are indebted to him for what he has achieved. We are very fortunate that CAP will continue to benefit from his outstanding skills in his new position of Secretary - General. In addition, the Royal Town Planning Institute must be thanked for their on - going support of CAP, and specifically the hosting of the CAP secretariat in the offices of the Scottish Branch office of the RTPI.

Finally, the contributions of our members in building a strong profession around the globe cannot go unacknowledged. Every member organisation continues to play this vital role, but there are some specific actions which warrant particular mention. These include the role of the Planning Institute of Australia and the Institute of Town Planners of Sri Lanka who have worked together on post - disaster planning in Sri Lanka following the tsunami of 2004, the Canadian Institute of Planners for their vision and hard work in delivering the World Planners Congress as a critical event linked to the World Urban Forum, and the South African Planning Institute for their leadership in the formation of the African Planning Association.

In his book, "Race against Time", Stephen Lewis suggests that the function of a major international body is to maintain cohesion and sustain momentum. That is what I hope CAP will do in the field of planning, throughout the Commonwealth in the period from now until the next World Urban Forum in 2008. 

Being given the leadership of CAP is a big challenge and an even bigger honour. All I can do in return is to promise to do my best to make sure that we maintain the cohesion which now clearly exists between planners from around the globe, and sustain the momentum which has come from the success of the many recent initiatives.

Christine Platt, President

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