Spatial planning deals with processes of future change in physical landscape and structures in a given geographical area, including the geographical distribution of people and economic activities within the region. Spatial planning encompasses urban and rural planning as well as environmental and technical infrastructure planning. Ramboll acknowledges the relations between socio-political-economic and environmental issues, recognising also key cross-cutting issues – in spatial planning processes.
The approach to spatial planning should preferably be a holistic and integrated way of planning the geographical distribution of land use pattern and human activities over a given area of land in an urban or a rural setting.
Spatial planning also has to consider public participation, technical infrastructure and environmental considerations. Therefore, it should also be understood as a tool for facilitating and improving the livelihoods of disadvantaged groups, strengthening their ability to fully participate in society and to grow out of poverty. Hence it is important to find a balance between and ways to integrate use of natural resources, technical innovation, economic investments, and resource recycling and social conditions when conducting spatial planning. Geographic information system is a commonly used digital tool for mapping and analysing the spatial distributing of human activities.
Urban and rural planning has to be planned in close relation to each other since they are closely interlinked in a complex system of supply and demand of different service’s, ecosystem services, social interaction, resource exchanges etc.