2010 51st Annual Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota

• Agenda at a Glance
• First time attending an ACSP Conference? If you're attending ACSP for the first time and would enjoy having a well-seasoned ACSP attendee visit with you and assist with introductions, please send us a request!
• Looming deadlines! Conference Registration, Hotel Registration, Final Paper Submission...all by September 13th! 
• RSVP to attend the World Planning Schools 2011 Congress Reception, Friday, October 8
• All events take place at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis.
• Local Host Welcome Message
• Conference Theme
• Abstract decisions were only delivered by email. If you never received a notification of accept or reject for your abstract, be sure to contact kdd@acsp.org.
• The schedule (posted by track) is now in the Schedule section (see menu at right).
• The 2010 Book of Accepted Abstracts has now been published.

2010 will be a GREEN Conference

We're excited to share with you the "GREEN" initiatives at work already at the 2010 conference hotel, the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis. Check it out on our Hotel Information page.

2010 Welcome Message from Local Host University of Minnesota

On behalf of the University of Minnesota, the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs would like to welcome you to the 51st annual conference of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP). The 2010 conference will be held in Minneapolis, which, along with the state capitol, St. Paul, form the Twin Cities.

The Twin Cities are renowned for planning innovations - ranging from their historic park systems to the innovative Metropolitan Council that coordinates regional planning. The Twin Towns are also home to nationally recognized programs in neighborhood revitalization and award-wining architecture and infrastructure, including the new I – 35W bridge over the Mississippi River.

For your edification and enjoyment we’ve planned a full agenda. In addition to the regular ACSP research program, we've lined up a series of interesting tours on Friday afternoon to highlight the best of Twin Cities planning. The conference welcome reception will be at the Mill City Museum, a National Historic Landmark in an old flour mill on the banks of the Mississippi River. The museum is adjacent to the new Jean Nouvel-designed Guthrie Theater, which includes the Endless Bridge, a cantilevered lobby extending 178 feet toward the river – an architectural marvel you won’t want to miss. On Friday evening, we're adding something new in the way of mobile tours: an excursion to the arts district and, in honor of Octoberfest, visits to local microbreweries.

Combine the opportunity to learn about distinctive planning achievements with two vibrant downtowns, outstanding visual and performing arts, and Minnesota’s lovely fall season – and you’re bound to have a memorable experience at the 2010 ACSP conference.

We're honored to host you, and look forward to your visit in October.

Ed Goetz
Chair, Local Host Committee, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs

Greg Lindsey
Associate Dean, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs
 

Conference Theme

Most planning takes place within a complex environment of varied and often competing influences that operate at multiple scales. From the most micro-site-specific environment to global considerations, planners face challenges whose very definition and meaning may depend upon scale. The theme of the conference is meant to highlight the set of analytic and practical issues related to the need of planners to operate in and account for multiple scales. Specifically, we invite the exploration of three sets of questions: 1) How does scale affect our understanding of problems and solutions? How do problems shift in their essential characteristics as one moves from micro to meso to macro scale? 2) How do or how should planners integrate, manage, and reconcile demands and objectives originating at multiple scales? What practices are in place for integrating professional and citizen involvement across scales, including multi-scale collaboration and inter-governmental cooperation? 3) How do planning and governance structures at one scale affect outcomes at another? What are the regional impacts of municipal or neighborhood level planning initiatives, and what are the local impacts of regional approaches?