ABSTRACT
The focus of this book is on the interaction between conflicts that break out in urban areas, particularly over major development projects, and the institutions and practices of planning interventions. The particular concern is with the kinds of transformations in political practices and governance institutions that might promote more environmentally and socially progressive outcomes. The chapters are rich in ideas on how to move in such a direction, as well as in how to analyze such conflicts. In my reflections on these chapters, I comment very generally on the interaction between urban conflicts and planning institutions, and on the relationship of analysis to action.
