Planning Canadian Regions

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2001, xiv, pp. 473. Gerald Hodge and Ira Robinson. Vancouver: UBC Press, ISBN 0-7748-0850-0

This volume represents an immense undertaking, a labour of commitment, and a reflection of an entire lifetime of research and professional practice by two of Canada's most prominent planners. The authors trace the origins and history of regional planning from its roots in the utopian and regionalism movements of over a century ago to its current state as a pragmatic form of territorial housekeeping. I would have added another chapter on the recent decline of regional planning on the mantle of economic efficiency, local self-interest and political expediency.

The main body of this thick …