Making Use of Deleuze in Planning: Proposals for a speculative and immanent assessment method (New Directions in Planning Theory)

Making Use of Deleuze in Planning translates and re-creates some of Gilles Deleuze’s most abstract philosophical concepts to form a new, practicable planning assessment tool. It shows what his philosophy can do for planning theory as well as planning assessment practice and, in doing so, sets out a pragmatic approach to Deleuzian studies: one that helps form bridges between ontological problems and the problems found in professional practice. It also breaks new ground in assessment methodology by challenging the essentialist ideas underpinning assessment methods like BREEAM and setting out and testing a new form of non-essentialist assessment named SIAM. The book argues that Deleuze’s philosophy can be made useful to planning as long as one is prepared to adapt and re-create his key ontological concepts to respond to the specific demands of the field.

Gareth Abrahams crosses an invisible line between theory and practice. He is a Deleuzian theorist whose publications push the boundaries of Deleuzian scholarship and spatial theory. He is also a practising, chartered architect who has designed and delivered a range of complex buildings across the UK from specialist schools to large office developments and from bespoke new-build schemes to highly sensitive heritage refurbishments.