Best Practices and Policy Transfer in Spatial Planning

Abstract

Numerous European programmes and initiatives have been instrumental in identifying a large (and increasing) number of examples of best practice (or good practice) in the field of spatial planning. In fact, there is now a profligacy of best practice, which means that many policy-makers are confronted with too much information if they try to assemble all the examples of best practice. However, the identification and dissemination of best practices remains central to many areas of European policy, including sustainable development and the urban environment. The underlying assumption in these documents appears to be that best practices are equally applicable and effective in another setting, and that the development and dissemination of best practice will help to lead to improvements in policy and practice in other countries, regions or cities. This paper argues that such a belief is too simplistic. The reality is that best practices have a more limited role in policy-making processes: other influences are more important. The value of exchanging European best practices is limited since there are huge differences in the technological, economic, political or social situation between countries in the European Union. This is particularly true when considering the transfer of best practices between ‘new’ and ‘old’ member states, where the social and economic situation, as well as the institutional frameworks, are often very different in the ‘borrowing’ and ‘lending’ countries. This paper focuses on the implications and importance of best practices for spatial planning. The paper begins by reviewing recent European policy documents on cross-border and inter-territorial cooperation, and examines the importance these documents attach to the identification and dissemination of best practices. Next, the paper identifies some of the main reasons why governments have been increasingly active in developing (or claiming) innovative policies that represent best practice: reasons include image, prestige, power and funding. The paper then reviews literature on how best practices are actually viewed and used by government officials, and examines the extent to which best practices are influential in changing the direction of policy. This paper examines the extent to which best practices in spatial planning are transferable, especially between eastern and western Europe.