Is Public Participation Making Urban Planning More Democratic? The Israeli Experience

The article examines the alleged connection between the goal of democratization of the Israeli planning system and 'public participation in planning'. It begins by claiming that the planning system in Israel is a non-democratic environment within the democratic state. This situation has stimulated the enormous development of theoretical and practical work relating to 'public participation'. Yet, statutory and voluntary participation mechanisms in Israel have not been able to influence the decision-making structure in planning. Moreover, most public organizations and NGOs that are supposed to represent the voice of the public are far from being genuine public delegates. The article also relates to the power/knowledge problem, stating that participation processes cannot escape it. The article highlights the widely experienced tensions between the democratization of planning through more consultative and participative processes, the role of elected representatives and of civil society movements which choose co-operative rather than oppositional strategies.