Research project Regional governance and local translations into urban planning in times of climate change
This research examines how regional policy documents and visions of sustainable development are shaped, interpreted, and implemented in municipal planning in the context of climate change and intensifying natural hazard risks. Despite substantial investments in climate action and governance, developments often appear to be moving in the opposite direction. Our research takes this inertia as its point of departure and analyses how regional governance, knowledge production, and local practices interact when climate and environmental goals are to be realised.
The research is funded by Region Stockholm (2026–2027) and Länsförsäkringars forskningsstiftelse (2026–2028) and is conducted in two parts with distinct but complementary foci.
Part 1 analyses the Regional Development Plan for the Stockholm region (RUFS), which can be understood as a way of producing steering signals and interpretive frameworks for municipal land- and water-use planning. By following the ongoing work on RUFS 2060 and comparing it with RUFS 2050, the study examines how “visionary ambiguity”, goal conflicts, and divergent interpretations generate variation in how climate and environmental objectives are integrated into local planning. We combine document analysis of consultation responses with interviews with key contributors to understand how greening concepts—such as ecosystem services, climate adaptation, and nature-based solutions—are integrated, often with diverse underlying meanings, within the RUFS process.
Part 2 deepens the analysis by examining how recurring greening concepts in the RUFS policy are interpreted and translated by local experts, with a focus on municipal officials, external consultants, and environmental organisations. This part also analyses how these translations shape risk assessment and long-term societal resilience. Document studies are combined with interviews with local experts to understand how climate, environmental, and risk issues are given meaning, priority, and practical impact in planning processes.
Taken together, the research contributes new knowledge about how regional governance is produced and translated into practice, and how local interpretations of greening concepts both enable and constrain sustainable transformation. The ambition is to identify pathways towards more coordinated, knowledge-based, and resilient municipal and regional planning.