Interactive planning - use of the ICT as a support for public participation in planning urban development: Serbia nad Montenegro cases

Reconstruction of the towns with an aim to reduce pollution and mitigate the conflict of resources usage and possibilities of their renewal will be a critical planning problem of the new millenium. These problems cannot be solved only by professionals and experts. They require some methods that combine technical with economic and natural sciences on one side, and an intensive and active participation of a wide range of participants on the other. And this, of course, assumes a number of different and often opposing perspectives (Doyle and Batty, 1998). On the other hand, it has long since been known that this rapid development of information and communication technologies (ICT), especially Internet, presents a global phenomenon affecting various aspects of human life, which is of special interest for this research and for the planning of a sustainable community development. According to the opinion of theoreticians and promoters of interactive and collaborative planning (Foreseter, 1989; Innes, 1995, 1998; Heally, 1997), a plan results from the learning process among those involved in its development. Instruments that ensure a clear and open presentation of the analyses underlining the selections made, powerful enough to visualize the whole process, are those which can increase the understanding and involvement of the public in this planning process. This paper will investigate the application of ICT as an instrument supporting the participation of the citizens in city-planning. This research deals with previous experience in the development and application of information and communication technologies (ICT) as a function of public participation in urban development planning of the cities and towns of Serbia and Montenegro. The paper will present the application of ICT in different planning stages, some examples of different spatial and problem levels. Beside information and cooperation, this work will analyse the role of ICT in citizen education intended to enable them to participate in the planning.