Exploring the relationship between urban planning and systemic inequality

The last two years were undoubtedly challenging for universities worldwide. How do you teach online and maintain personal contact with students? How do you deliver networking opportunities when in-person events are cancelled? How can you maintain the quality of student camaraderie if most of the interactions remain virtual?

An example of this can be seen in LSE’s Regional and Urban Planning Studies (RUPS) programme. The continued commitment of alumnus Richard Oram (MSc Planning Studies 1977) has helped the programme to remain resilient and provide new opportunities to enhance the student experience.

Richard’s influence extends beyond the scholarship, research fellows, and student enrichment opportunities supported by the Oram Foundation – it is also felt through the ongoing impact that builds from year to year in our global community. An example of this is the impact of former scholarship recipient and RUPS student Katie Mulkowsky, who took her passion for racial justice and planning and garnered support from her cohort to create Planning for Justice.

This online resource platform explores the relationship between urban planning and systemic inequality, and has an explicit commitment to social justice and anti-racist planning efforts. Their growing digital library aims to become a democratic tool for learning and advocacy, in a move to disrupt legacies of uneven development.

The launch of the site has also opened new opportunities for RUPS students to be inspired and creative, as they can get involved in projects such as the Progressing Planning podcast series and interview experts on how urban planning is fostering change in contemporary society.