ABSTRACT
Planning environmental systems in an urban setting is a complex activity. This is due to the fact that many actors, stakeholders and concerns are involved in such planning processes. Planners, indeed, are often encouraged to acquire skills to master those particular situations where they are engaged in settling conflicts and solving intricate and multifaceted issues. Decision and planning support systems based on multi-criteria analysis have proved to be helpful in these turbulent settings. These methods help planners to clarify the issues at hand help them gain strategic knowledge. They are also helpful in guiding communities to find common positions in order to reach a collective decision (De Montis and Nijkamp, 2006).
