Planetizen Courses offers historical perspective through courses designed to help planners understand the history of the profession and how essential concepts and ideas in the field were developed and popularized. Learn about the triumphs and failures of past planners and how past decisions continue to shape urban form today.

History Courses

people on steps of city center
Lewis Mumford on the City 1: The City - Heaven and Hell
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
vintage photo of a boat with migrants near ellis island
A Brief History of Immigration and Planning
Álvaro Huerta
65 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
abandoned houses during great recession
Understanding the Great Recession
Peter Gordon
74 Mins
sculpture in an urban plaza
Design for Peace and Democracy
Kristin Faurest
50 Mins
  • CIP
  • AICP CM
traffic of cars on city street
Lewis Mumford on the City 2: The City - Cars or People?
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
large group of people doing yoga outdoors in a city center
Women and Cities: Gender Equity, Past and Present
Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman
54 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
Pompeii ruins with Mount Vesuvius in the background
History of City Planning 1: Ancient Times to the Modern Age (7,500 BC to 1900)
Jason Luger
53 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
Image of International Symbol of Access next to weighing scales
US Disability Access Laws for Planners
Jonathan Katz-Ouziel, Thomas Hamed
109 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
European city with train and buildings in black and white
Lewis Mumford on the City 3: The City and Its Region
30 Mins
  • AICP CM
women and children sitting at praxagora kok project in Stockholm
Women and Cities 3: Gender Equity in Private Life
Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman
54 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
buildings, cars, people on Halsted Street in Chicago in 1900
History of City Planning 2: Modern Ideas of City Planning (1900-1939)
Jason Luger
49 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
still from the movie of two people walking on sidewalk with trees and buildings in the background
Lewis Mumford on the City 4: The Heart of the City
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
kansas city missori buildings
Introduction to Culture and Placemaking
Annalise Fonza
63 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
A B-29 over Osaka, Japan on 1 June 1945
History of City Planning 3: Midcentury Modern (1940-1979)
Jason Luger
64 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
cars on highway with suburb in background
Lewis Mumford on the City 5: The City as Man's Home
31 Mins
  • AICP CM
people sitting on a bench overlooking new york skyline
The Theory and Practice of Culture and Placemaking
Annalise Fonza
71 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
view of Shanghai, China skyline
History of City Planning 4: Planning in the Postmodern Age (1980-Today)
Jason Luger
74 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
large city fountain surrounded by people
Lewis Mumford on the City 6: The City and the Future
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
emergency call box on public street
Crime and Urban Planning in the United States
Qian He
51 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
A collage of four megacities
History of City Planning 5: The City of Tomorrow
Jason Luger
56 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
historic buildings in Charleston South Carolina
Introduction to Historic Preservation
Meredith Johnson
38 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
skyline of LInkcoln Park Chicago
Economic Thinking for Planners: Cities, Externalities, and Governance
Peter Gordon
56 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
person standing in front of a colorful mural
Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design
Kayla Hunter
59 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
portrait of Daniel Burnham
Make No Little Plans: Daniel Burnham and the American City
58 Mins
  • AICP CM

Top History Instructors

Jason Luger

Jason Luger is a lecturer in City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley, College of Environmental...

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Mark David Major

Dr. Mark David Major, AICP, CNU-A is a Professor of Urban Design at the Savannah College...

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Kristin Faurest

Kristin Faurest is a public garden education and outreach professional, author, and landscape architecture educator, committed...

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Annalise Fonza

Dr. Annalise Fonza is a Lecturer in the Department of Urban & Regional Planning at the...

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Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman

Katrina is a lecturer, researcher, and advocate for heart-centered cities. Her work focuses on human behavior...

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Álvaro Huerta

Dr. Álvaro Huerta is a Religion and Public Life Organizing Fellow at Harvard Divinity School and...

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Peter Gordon

Peter Gordon is Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern California Price School of Public Policy...

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Thomas Hamed

Thomas Hamed, AICP is a transportation planner who specializes in commuter transportation and mobility for all...

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Jonathan Katz-Ouziel

Jonathan Katz-Ouziel is an autistic planner, an independent accessibility consultant, and the founder of Opossum House...

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Elizabeth Doerr

Elizabeth Doerr is a writer with expertise and awareness around social and racial justice issues and...

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Lynn Peterson

Lynn Peterson is a nationally recognized transportation and land use integration expert.

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Nolan Gray

M. Nolan Fray is the Research Director for California YIMBY, an expert in urban land-use regulation...

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Qian He

Dr. Qian He is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Maryland, College Park and...

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Kayla Hunter

Kayla is an experienced non-profit professional who works with at-risk youth to reimagine unused, neglected spaces...

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Lance Freeman

Lance Freeman is a Professor in the Urban Planning Program at Columbia University in New York...

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Dave Amos

Dave is an Assistant Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at Cal Poly...

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Meredith Johnson

Meredith is the owner of Johnson Planning and Preservation LLC, a boutique firm that works to...

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Kevin Credit

Kevin is the Assistant Director for Urban Informatics at the Center for Spatial Data Science at...

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All History Courses

Building Bad, Part 2: How Architectural Utility is Damaged by Expression Sign Up

Building Bad, Part 2: How Architectural Utility is Damaged by Expression

Instructor: Jonathan Ochshorn

Join Jonathan Ochshorn on a captivating exploration of his theory "Building Bad" in Part Two of this course. Discover the fascinating interplay between artistic expression and the functionality of buildings, and how they can sometimes clash.

4.33
59 Mins
CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM
Building Bad, Part 1: How Architectural Utility is Constrained by Politics Sign Up

Building Bad, Part 1: How Architectural Utility is Constrained by Politics

Instructor: Jonathan Ochshorn

Discover the theory of “Building Bad”: an examination of the costs and benefits that can limit the functionality of buildings in exchange for profits.

4.38
57 Mins
CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM
Environmental and Sustainability Standards Sign Up

Environmental and Sustainability Standards

Instructor: Carlos Zapata

This course explains the different and most relevant sustainability standards—such as GRI, CDP, SASB, ISO, B-Corp, and others—as well as the differences between process and performance standards.

4.20
61 Mins
CIP
AICP CM

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