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.
All History Courses
US Disability Access Laws for Planners
Instructor: Jonathan Katz-Ouziel
Explore the key disability rights laws that shape planners' work — including the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Architectural Barriers Act, the Fair Housing Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 — to understand their core provisions.
Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix it
Instructor: Nolan Gray
Nolan Gray presents the complex history of zoning regulation, showing how major legislative decisions led to the country's current state of car reliance, sprawl, and inequity. Now, zoning reform is in the air. But why stop at mere reform?
History of U.S. Landscape Architecture, Part 1
Instructor: Kristin Faurest
Kristin Faurest explores the history of the profession of landscape architecture from its origins through the 1960s, providing a vibrant global context of how humankind has shaped its landscape over the ages.