Für wen planen wir?

The objective of this paper Whom do we plan for? – Analysis and comparison of two planning controversies: causes and possible strategies by Magdalena Konieczek and Jacob Köppel is to illustrate challenges in planning processes associated with large-scale projects, based on two case-studies. Therefore it explains critical approval processes, focussing on possibilities for participation. The discourse on the selected case-studies – the nearly finished construction of the new Berlin-Brandenburg-Airport (BER) and the reconstruction of the railway-infrastructure in Stuttgart (“Stuttgart 21”) – illustrates that this kind of projects typically has a huge potential for conflicts and that these problems are based in the German planning system. The result of this exploration is that the German planning system needs to generate a higher level of rationality, reflectivity and legitimacy in its decisions. The problems are furthermore rooted in inadequate options for the citizens to participate. Not all of those problems can be solved by the planning authorities and there is always a risk for large-scale projects to spark a controversy. But it is possible for planners to identify such conflicts in an early stage and to minimize their impacts. For this they would need comprehensive participation in earlier stages of the projects with the possibility for all citizens to discuss their arguments in equality to the planners and to participate in the decision-making.