ABSTRACT
The conceptualisation of the territory through spatial images is an integral part of spatial planning. The illustration of spatial policy options through maps and other cartographic representations can be very powerful both in the planning process and in communicating the key messages of planning strategies. The product of the planning process – the final key diagram or policy map – can help to raise awareness for certain spatial issues and stimulate action at lower tiers of government, or within the private sector. During the planning process, the communicative power of policy maps can support the discussion by revealing different parties’ priorities for spatial strategies (Healey et al. 1997). Cartographic representations can help to set the agenda and shape discourses, but they can also be used to manipulate other participants in the process by distorting or highlighting certain facts (Pickles 1992; Neuman 1996, 2000). The decision of what should be ‘put on the map’, and how it is going to be presented, can empower certain interests over others and influence decision-making.
