The Urban Planning Institute

of the Republic of Slovenia was established in 1955 by the Executive Council of the Assembly of Slovenia, as a research and consultancy agency. Its activities include research and expert development work in the fields of urban and regional planning and related disciplines. In 1993 the Urban Planning Institute became a public research organisation, recognised and partly financially supported by the Slovene Government.

Objectives

• Advancement of theoretical research in planning and design
• Development and evaluation of planning methods and techniques
• Development and application of planning information systems
• Development of new activities related to institution building support
• Education and training of planning students and professionals
• Implementation of applied research in design projects
• Publishing, information exchange and documentation of planning literature
• Transfer of knowledge through consultation activities

Fields of activities

Within the broad framework of urban, regional and spatial planning the following specific fields can be listed:

• methodology of programming urban development
• methodology of shaping urban form
• urban geography and sociology, regional economics
• applied demography with regard to town-planning forecasting
• comprehensive traffic studies
• planning of residential areas
• planning of tourist regions
• urban renewal, preservation and landscape design, etc.

In the field of professional development, the Institute elaborates model plans, standards, norms and planning criteria; it maintains a data-bank, provides information and documentation services; works on terminology and maintains a rich planning library. The Institute is involved in publishing and trains design and planning professionals. In this way it is able to offer the public an insight into the theoretical and practical findings of its research staff and also a connection between domestic and foreign research and practice in the fields of urban and regional planning and design.