While much of the research in the School of Planning is multidisciplinary, professors' research activities generally fall into two major theme areas:
- physical/natural environment
- human and built environment
A particular interest may cross many different themes. For example, airport noise planning requires knowledge of health, design, development, environment, and information systems. Planning inherently combines many different themes into one.
Physical natural environment
Human beings interact with the environment in many ways. Planners must understand the environment to promote responsible and sustainable development strategies throughout the world.
Areas of study relating to environmental planning include:
- Biology and ecology
- Water and wetlands
- Watersheds
- Forests and parks
Human and built environment
The built environment is created by humans. Infrastructure, such as cities and towns, need to be managed.
Areas of study for the built and human environments can include:
- Urban design
- Social and demographic dimensions
- Economic development
- Regional planning
- Heritage and preservation
- Health
