Invitation to PhD defence: How Strategic Planning Affects Villages' Opportunities and Inequalities
On Friday, April 11, 2025, you are invited to attend the PhD defense of Kasper Friis Bavnb忙k. The PhD project focuses on strategic village planning and how municipal planning practices and collaboration with local councils and associations in villages can either reduce or reinforce existing inequalities.
What is the main focus of your PhD?
The main focus of my PhD is to contribute knowledge to the understanding of village development and how different interpretations of justice implicitly shape development potentials and expectations for various actors, both from the municipality and local communities. Additionally, it examines the broader conditions that local communities need to participate in such development collaborations.
How did you become interested in your research field?
My interest in geography and the cultural aspects of places began with a sense of adventure and traveling, where I witnessed vast differences in living conditions鈥攆rom favelas in Rio to Nairobi鈥檚 slums near economic powerhouses. This sparked my interest in justice, which I connected with cultural sociology and theories of social structures, leading me to the concept of spatial justice鈥攅ssentially, social justice from a geographical perspective.
My research stems from a growing interest in rural sociology and strategic planning, which was reinforced during my master鈥檚 studies and an internship in a municipal planning department. When strategic planning for villages became a requirement, I started investigating how it affects the development of municipalities and local communities. My PhD explores these issues by analyzing data on municipal planning and the collaboration between municipalities and villages鈥攆ocusing on how planning can create both opportunities and inequalities in rural areas.
Types of justice in strategic village planning
Justice can be understood in several ways:
Distributive justice: Focus on the distribution of resources and opportunities, e.g. health and education.
Procedural justice: Focus on local involvement in decision-making processes.
Equality vs. Equity: Equality means treating everyone equally, while equity recognizes the need for different treatment to achieve justice.
In rural areas, these aspects affect, among other things, access to jobs, schools and health services. Strategic village planning can be used to promote spatial justice and create a balance between rural and urban areas.
What are the main points in your PhD?
My Ph.D. consists of five scientific articles and a framework text that synthesizes the results and puts them into perspective. Across the articles, three key points are highlighted:
Inequality is reinforced through non-decisions.
Although new strategies and tools are introduced in planning, existing paradigms often persist. An example is the neo-endogenous development perspective, which places responsibility on the local community itself. Villages that lack the resources or capacity to engage fall behind, leading to increased disparities between them.
The democratic paradox in local participation.
Local ownership and collaboration are emphasized as keys to development, but in practice, the framework for participation is defined by municipalities and adapted to specific types of associations, especially local councils. Other associations that operate more independently are also included but face greater challenges. Thus, participation does not necessarily ensure more democratic influence, as organizational differences create unequal conditions.
Discourses shape the opportunities of villages.
Municipal plans often describe villages as places with potential for viability based on nature and quality of life. At the same time, viability is defined by elements found in cities—such as housing, businesses, and retail—which positions villages in a way that highlights their shortcomings rather than their strengths.
Who is your research relevant to, and how can they use it?
The results primarily target anyone interested in the development or planning of villages. However, three groups, in particular, will find them relevant.
The first group consists of professionals working with planning and rural/local communities, such as municipal planners, rural district coordinators, and other officials in municipalities, regions, ministries, and agencies, as well as consultancy firms contributing to local development plans and more.
The second group consists of volunteers engaged in the development of villages and local communities. These include local councils and citizens' associations, which are often involved in developing their communities in collaboration with municipalities.
Last but not least, the results are also relevant at the political level, as my research provides insights into the consequences that strategic decisions may have.