ABSTRACT
In Salman Rushdie’s magic fable Luka and the Fire of Life (2010) the eponymous hero sets out on a desperate quest to steal the fire of life that can save his father from perpetual sleep. Inspired by the mission of Rushdie’s figure, I believe that planning and governance are in a similar need of culture as the metaphorical ‘fire of life’, if they are to shrug off planning indifference and counter the reigning cultural expedience that characterizes global neoliberal governmentalities for the most part. Of course, the culture I am speaking of is ontologically holistic and the governance I refer to comprises the full scope of state, market and social institutions and activities that govern planning and administrative outcomes. Under governance viewed in these terms, the sectoral beneficiaries of culture’s fire and largesse would be widespread, and include not only spatial and strategic planning but also other key areas such as public administration, health, education, development studies and international relations. In this chapter I seek to highlight some of the conceptual and methodological possibilities for governance in widespread terms, by focusing on planning as a case study for culture, drawing on my book Reshaping Planning with Culture (Young 2008b) and other sources (Young 2008a, 2005).
