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

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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

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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

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kansas city missori buildings
Introduction to Culture and Placemaking
Annalise Fonza
63 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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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

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cars on highway with suburb in background
Lewis Mumford on the City 5: The City as Man's Home
31 Mins
  • AICP CM

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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

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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

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large city fountain surrounded by people
Lewis Mumford on the City 6: The City and the Future
29 Mins
  • AICP CM

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emergency call box on public street
Crime and Urban Planning in the United States
Qian He
51 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD

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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

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historic buildings in Charleston South Carolina
Introduction to Historic Preservation
Meredith Johnson
38 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD

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skyline of LInkcoln Park Chicago
Economic Thinking for Planners: Cities, Externalities, and Governance
Peter Gordon
56 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD

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person standing in front of a colorful mural
Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design
Kayla Hunter
59 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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portrait of Daniel Burnham
Make No Little Plans: Daniel Burnham and the American City
58 Mins
  • AICP CM

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three images of New York buildings, Central Park and a man riding a bike
U.S. City Planning 101
Dave Amos
46 Mins

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aerial view of ancient city grid
The American City, Part 1: A Brief History of the Regular Grid
Mark David Major
47 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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The Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park.
History of U.S. Landscape Architecture, Part 1
Kristin Faurest
64 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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Exterior of Pruitt Igoe housing complex
The Pruitt-Igoe Myth
84 Mins
  • AICP CM

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Panel of five speakers on webcams
Housing and Racial Justice: Current Events Urban Resilience
59 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD

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aerial view of los angeles at night
The American City, Part 2: The Invention of a New Scale
Mark David Major
50 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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Sprawling residential neighborhoods with many single family houses.
Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix it
Nolan Gray
67 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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City Dreamers film ad
City Dreamers
81 Mins

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aerial of Houston with houses and buildings
Planning for Racial Equity
Lance Freeman
55 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM

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aerial image of portland oregon
The American City, Part 3: Learning from the Grid
Mark David Major
53 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • 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

Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

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Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

Instructor: Jeff Speck

Jeff Speck explains his five principal reasons for building more walkable places — Economics, the Environment, Public Health, Equity, and Social Cohesiveness — arming practitioners with a full range of arguments in favor of pro-walkability planning.

4.53
79 Mins
CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM
Free
Regulating Electronic Message Centers

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Regulating Electronic Message Centers

Instructor: James Carpentier

This course provides practical, solution-focused guidance for regulations that leverage digital sign technology while protecting community aesthetic values and safety concerns. This course is available for free.

4.19
49 Mins
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD
Free

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