Sociotope mapping - exploring public open space and its multiple use values in urban and landscape planning practice

Abstract

Sociotope mapping exploring public open space and its multiple
use values in urban and landscape planning practice.
This paper aims to describe the theoretical body of a new urban
planning tool called the sociotope map (Swedish: sociotopkarta),
developed within the planning practice of the Stockholm City
Urban Planning Administration. Since the postmodern communicative
turn in urban and landscape planning, dominated by densification
and sprawl, there has been a great demand for a more
efficient connection between the system world of planners and the
life world of citizens, starting from the users space and perspective,
not the planners. In Lefebvres terms the sociotope map is
a representation of the users perceived space. The key Marxist
concept here is use value, or more accurately in environmental
economic terms: direct use value. The Stockholm sociotope map
is consequently a map of the commonly perceived direct open use
values of specific open space, of the citizens of Stockholm. The
map emphasizes that people share use values but that every open
space has a unique set of values. Its representation of diversity of
place (topos) is maybe just the level of reduction that makes the
map true enough to the citizens and at the same time useful for
the planners. This can explain its recent recognition in Stockholm
and other fast growing municipalities in Sweden (e.g. Gothenburg
2004-2007 and Uppsala/Gottsunda 2006). However more experience
and research still remain to completely understand this tool.
The recent success can only be explained by the fact that there is a
true demand. A society which is turning increasingly postmodern,
globalized and individualized can hardly plan, develop or grow without
knowledge of the common use values of urban public open space.