PLPR PhD Workshops
Since 2016, the PLPR PhD student network has organised full-day PhD workshops. The workshops are connected to the annual conference (usually on the day before the start of the conference). The workshops are organised by the PLPR PhD coordinator in collaboration with the local organising committee. The students are mentored by experienced researchers out of the PLPR community.
The next PhD workshop will take place in Ås (Norway) in May 2027. More info here.
Previous workshops took place in:
- 2026: Atlanta, GA, USA
- 2025: Cardiff, Wales
- 2024: Munich, Germany
- 2023: Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- 2022: Ghent, Belgium
- 2021: Online Workshop
- 2020: Ústí nad Labem, Czechia
- 2019: College Station, USA
- 2018: Novi Sad, Serbia
- 2017: Hongkong, China
- 2016: Bern, Switzerland
Before the establishment of full day workshops in 2016, the PhD student network organised different events in a variety of formats.
2026 Atlanta, USA
This year’s PLPR PhD Workshop at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia, brought together seventeen doctoral students for an intensive and energising exchange, held just before the main conference. The workshop opened with a session by Thomas Hartmann, who offered practical reflections on how to engage with and make use of academic networks.
The core of the workshop consisted of PhD presentations in three small groups. This format enabled focused and in-depth discussions, with each group guided by two mentors. The setting created a supportive atmosphere that encouraged constructive feedback and allowed participants to engage more deeply with each other’s projects. In parallel, posters were displayed during the main conference in the coffee and lunch area, providing senior academics with insights into the work of the “new academic generation.”
A central takeaway was the value of working in small, mentored groups. Participants emphasised the quality of the discussions and reported that the workshop exceeded their expectations, leaving them with renewed motivation and greater clarity for their research.
Participants were mentored by
• Dr Vera Götze (University of California, USA)
• Professor André Sorensen (University of Toronto, Canada)
• Professor Thomas Hartmann (TU Dortmund University, Germany)
• Professor Nurit Alfasi (Ben-Gurion University, Israel)
• Assistant ProfessorJosje Bouwmeester (Utrecht University, Netherlands)
2025 Cardiff, Wales
The 2025 PhD workshop was held on Monday, 3 March 2025, marking the start of the conference week for doctoral researchers. As a well-established and valued tradition within PLPR, the event attracted a record 29 participants. The programme began with an introductory session on developing an effective research pitch. Participants were then divided into small groups, each led by experienced mentors:
• Professor Ellen Bassett (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA)
• Dr Sebastian Dembski (University of Liverpool, UK)
• Professor Jean-Marie Halleux (University of Liège, Belgium)
• Associate Professor Andreas Hengstermann
• Professor Terje Holsen (both Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway)
Within these groups, PhD researchers presented their work and received structured, in-depth feedback. The workshop concluded with a plenary session reflecting on key insights. Participants reported gaining new perspectives on their research, increased confidence in situating their work within wider academic debates, and a stronger appreciation of peer exchange as a foundation for future collaboration.
2024 Munich, Germany
As part of PLPR’s annual 2024 conference at the Technical University of Munich, PLPR invited a group of enthusiastic PhD students to present their research in our pre-conference PhD workshop. 21 PhD students got to know each other and discussed their projects in smaller groups mentored by senior scholars from the PLPR community. The most important lesson of the day: students should own their research!
2023 Ann Arbor, USA
2023 Ann Arbor, USA
The 2023 PLPR PhD Workshop took place at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, kicking off the annual conference with a full day of mentoring and exchange. The workshop was organised by PLPR PhD Coordinators Josje Bouwmeester and Dr Sofija Nikolić Popadić (Institute of Social Sciences, Belgrade). Following a welcome by conference host Professor Richard Norton, the session opened with presentations from senior mentors. Professor Rebecca Leshinsky offered strategies on how to refine and simplify the central theme of a doctoral thesis, while Professor Edwin Buitelaar shared insights on academic publishing, highlighting the importance of prioritising quality over quantity.
Participants were divided into two small groups to deliver brief presentations on their doctoral research, followed by constructive feedback, questions, and discussion from peers and mentors. The relaxed atmosphere allowed participants to speak openly about challenges in their work, while comparative discussions highlighted both similarities and distinctions across different international planning systems.
The workshop was coordinated by Josje Bouwmeester and Dr Sofija Nikolić Popadić. Participants were mentored by:
- Professor Rebecca Leshinsky (RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia)
- Professor Edwin Buitelaar (Utrecht University, Netherlands)
2022 Ghent, Belgium
The 2022 PhD workshop took place on June 4, 2022 in Ghent, Belgium. Sixteen PhD students – all at different stages of their research project- participated in the workshop. Participants came from a wide range of backgrounds, including planning, law, geography, economics, and political science.
The workshop kicked off with a plenary session on “Research audience, goals, question, and design” led by Prof. Richard Norton and “The do’s and don’ts of PhD research” by Prof. Tejo Spit. This was followed by sessions in smaller groups, in which students were challenged to present their research topic in three minutes, followed by a Q&A of up to 45 minutes per student. There was also plenty of time for participants to network with peers and mentors.
The workshop was coordinated by Sofija Nikolic-Popovic. Participants were mentored by:
- Prof. Richard Norton, University of Michigan (USA)
- Prof. Tejo Spit, University of Utrecht (NL)
- Prof. Janet Askew, President of the European Council of Spatial Planners
- Prof. Willem Korthals Altes, TU Delft (NL)
- Dr. Heather Richie, Ulster University (UK)
The next PhD workshop will take place on May 1st 2023 at the 17th Annual PLPR Conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan. PhD students with a focus on the intersection between planning, law, and property rights are encouraged to keep an eye on https://www.plpr2023.com/ for updates on the registration process.
2020 Ústí nad Labem, Czechia
COORDINATOR: LU ZHOU and Andreas Hengstermann
The fifth full day workshop took place on Monday 17th February 2020. The workshop aimed at encompassing Ph.D. students at any stage, whose research is relevant to the intersection of planning, law, and property rights. The conference encourages applications from students in planning, law, economics, real estate, geography, political science, public policy or related fields.
Highlights:
- Mentoring from experienced faculties.
- Clarify 8 key questions about your PhD project.
- Produce a poster.
- Social and networking with peers and faculties in the workshop and main conference
Our participants were mentored by:
2019 College Station, USA
Coordinator: Lu Zhou
The fourth full day workshop took place on Monday Feb. 18th 2019 at Texas A&M University, USA. Our ten participants were mentored by
- Prof. Chris Webster (University of Hong Kong), and
- Prof. John Sheehan (UTS, Sydney, Australia)
2018 Conference, Novi Sad, Serbia
Coordinator: Andreas Hengstermann
The third full day workshop was conducted in 2018 in Novi Sad. Our eight PhD students were support by:
- Rebecca Leshinsky (RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia)
- Tejo Spit (Utrecht University, The Netherlands)
2017 Conference, University of Hong Kong
Coordinator: Andreas Hengstermann
local student hosts: Jingjing Ruan and Nikolaos Soultanidis
In 2017, we continued the tradition started in the previous year, with a full day PLPR PhD Workshop. Sixteen PhD students were coached by experienced mentors:
- Mark Oranje (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
- Tejo Spit (Utrecht University, The Netherlands)
- Tzu-Yuan Chao (Stessa) (The National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan)
- Christian Strauß (Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research, Germany)
2016 Conference, University of Bern, Switzerland
Coordinator: Cygal Pellach
local student host: Andreas Hengstermann
In 2016, the tenth annual PLPR Conference, we held our first ever full day PLPR PhD Workshop. Nineteen PhD students from around the world participated in group sessions, each led by an experienced mentor. Our three mentors were:
- Ben Davy, outgoing PLPR President, Dortmund University, Germany
- Chris Webster, University of Hong Kong
- Marta Lora-Tamayo, National University of Distance Education, Spain
The workshop was opened the night before with group activities and dinner.
2015 Conference in Volos, Greece, University of Thessaly
Coordinator: Cygal Pellach
At the 2015 PLPR Conference, PhD students met for a half-day seminar, prior to the official start of the conference. Fifteen PhD students whose abstracts were accepted for presentation during the conference had the opportunity to meet each other and discuss their research in an open environment. Short presentations by each student allowed them to practice before presenting in their parallel sessions and exposed the group to a range of topics that are relevant to the PLPR association. Two senior academics and long-time PLPR members attended the session as mentors – Founding President Rachelle Alterman (Technion, Haifa) and Vice-President Richard Norton (University of Michigan). The mentors gave the students some valuable tips on publishing their research and life after the PhD.
2014 Conference in Haifa, Israel, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
Coordinator: Fennie van Straalen
local host student: Cygal Pellach
At the 2014 PLPR Conference, PhD students met for an informal dinner and “getting to know you session”.
2013 Portland Conference. Portland State University
Coordinator: Fennie van Straalen
This year the format for our PhD-gathering changed in comparison to previous conferences. Because many of the approximately 20 PhD-students attending the conference met each during previous conferences, the need for a formal network event during the conference was minor. Instead we organized a more informal pre-conference PhD-tour. This allowed new PhD-students to enter the group in a casual setting and presented the opportunity to experience planning in Portland.
With a group of 15 people, and guided by Nancy Hales from First Stop Portland, we visited the Waterfront project (a new 140-acre high-density, mixed use urban community under construction) and the Pearl district ( a port-industrial neighbourhood, currently redeveloped). We met Bruce Brown, Principal of GBD Architects and senior project manager for the development of the Brewery Blocks, a redevelopment project including historic preservation, urban retail and sustainable development in the Pearl district. During the tour we got (re)acquainted, learned about planning in Portland, (re)constructing buildings for earthquake damage prevention, used the street car system, and got a great impression of planning for an American city. We would like to thank Al Burns, from the local organizing committee, for his organizational skills and flexibility in organizing the tour and Nancy Hales, First Stop Portland, for her inspirational speech about planning for Portland and answering our questions.
2012 Belfast Conference. University of Ulster
Coordinator: Fennie van Straalen
Approximately 30 PhD and Masters students met together over lunch during the first day of the conference. The group discussed its varied research topics and each student named his/ her most influential academic scholar. The students urged each other to stay in touch and to continue to exchange ideas and cross-national knowledge in order to enrich their research. One way to facilitate this is by joining the PLPR Facebook group. Following a short introduction of each student, Fennie Van Straalen introduced her plans for the upcoming year, as a candidate for PLPR PhD Coordinator (following up Michelle Oren). After the conference, the PHDs continued bonding by visiting together a local Rugby match. The PhDs would like to thank the local PhD host committee, of Ulster University, for its contribution and hospitality.
2011 Edmonton Conference
Coordinator: Michelle Oren
A small group of PLPR students assembled for a 45 minute PhD session during the 2011 conference in Alberta university, Edmonton. The group consisted of both PhD and M.A students. During the activity students reflected on their own subjects of interest and research trying to find a common ground. Through schemes, students tried to map the various planning related topics, and locate themselves in this large map. The head of the needle that their research deals with. Without doubt the keyword that gathered all the students present was LAND. From there on an interesting puzzle was composed by the contributions of each of the students to land related subjects. Land as a physical agricultural resource, land as property, land as an economic asset, land as a disputed social issue – matter of distributive justice, land as boundaries and delimited spaces, and other.
2010 Dortmund Conference. TU Dortmund University
Coordinator: Thomas Hartmann
The young academics from PLPR assembled for the PhD roundtable during the 2010 conference. The aim of the session was to get in touch, learn from each other and help each other. In this manner, the 20 PhD students virtually conducted a PhD speed dating session.
Each participant explained to every one of the other PhD students the three conclusions of their own thesis. Afterwards, all participants of that particular session split up in four groups, each creating a word cloud of keywords – one around social justice, one around real estate, another around legislation and stakeholders. These posters reflect the wide scope of PhD topics within PLPR on one hand, on the other hand the roundtable showed that all PhD students within the association find common issues. This result encourages future PhD activities of PLPR.
Any questions or suggestions can be addressed to our PhD coordinator – phd@plpr-association.org.