Conference in Finland

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the Call for Papers for Special Session 05: “Coastal Planning: Beyond Protection”, organised by Clare Melhuish (UCL – Urban Laboratory), Francesca Paola Mondelli and Marta Rabazo Martin (Università degli Studi Roma Tre – Department of Architecture), which will take place within the framework of the 6th World Planning Schools Congress (WPSC 2026), to be held in Helsinki/Espoo/Tampere from 29 June to 3 July 2026.

The WPSC is a major international congress held every five years and promoted by the Global Planning Education Associations Network (GPEAN). It offers a unique opportunity to connect planning schools from around the world, share research experiences, and discuss the most pressing issues shaping the future of the discipline.

Our session aims to rethink coastal planning and design beyond the logic of protection, exploring the role of cultural heritage and community participation in processes of adaptation and resilience.

We particularly welcome multidisciplinary contributions from fields such as urban and regional planning, landscape architecture, architecture, geography, ecology, and the social sciences, addressing coastal areas through complementary and innovative perspectives. Our goal is to build a rich and stimulating session that brings different approaches, methodologies, and languages into dialogue, opening up new visions for the future of coastal territories.

We invite submissions that explore coastal territories and cities, the ways in which they are inhabited, represented, and transformed, as well as planning and design experiences that are socially and culturally rooted in fragile contexts.

Abstract submission deadline: 11 November 2025 – 23:59 (EET)

We look forward to receiving your contributions and encourage you to share this call with interested colleagues.