The status of participatory planning in Norway : a case study

Abstract

This master thesis is an investigation into the status of participatory planning in Norway. It has a special focus on the effect participating in planning can have on an ongoing process. The aim of the thesis is to investigate an assumed gap between participation as it is presented and how it works in real life. First the ideal and practice in international literature is presented, and a framework is constructed to analyze the literature and find traces of the gap. Then Norwegian system, guidebooks and other literature is presented to show the Norwegian ideal, the policy which is held up against critical literature and studies in the same framework to look for gaps in the Norwegian system. Finally, a Norwegian case is studied and presented. This case is then discussed in regards to effective participation and analyzed in the same framework to see if the same gaps are found in a practical case when studied in detail. After finding gaps in every section the thesis makes a conclusion on discrepancy in ideal and policy, and reality, before concluding on the status of participatory planning in Norway.