Sustainability and Spatial/Regional Planning: from past to future by reinforcing sustainability's social dimension and planning

In order to define planning in Europe as coherent with the evolution of EU cohesion and policy in the perspective of 2030 and 2050, territorial approach to plan, rather than what is traditionally called “spatial”, should have a specific role to play in achieving the objectives of the New Green Deal Strategy for smarter, more sustainable, and inclusive development close to citizens, that is territorial cohesion. Starting with this consideration, the paper discusses spatial planning from a geographical perspective, with a focus on greater territorialisation. This aspect has traditionally been considered less important than others in order to highlight the social values offered by the plan, which are now recognised as a powerful asset for sustainable and integrated development. Furthermore, the article allows for the revival of the discussion on planning harmonisation, which was initiated by CEMAT in 1983 during the Torremolinos European Conference and by the ESDP in 1999. It also renews the proposal of a shared approach to social sustainability via territorialised spatial planning, taking into account the lessons learned from the Territorial and Urban Agendas, the innovations introduced by the SDGs, and the experiences gained from the Recovery and Resilience Facility. To this end, social benefits should be considered as internal factors in the new economic and financial instruments that accompany planning, along with territorial and environmental impact assessment tools. In this context, the significance of geographical diversity in territorial patterns adopted in regions and countries is emphasised. Conclusions indicate that this approach represents a successful outcome of the gradual process of Europeanisation’s culture. This has been facilitated by a harmonised and cohesive discourse on territorial planning in recent decades, which has resulted in the emergence of a new functional approach based on geographical knowledge.