Planning regional development in Australia: questions of mobility and borders

Abstract

Radically changing ideas and practices around mobility and borders have made the question regarding how best to approach and plan regional development in Australia more complex. Using the conceptual tools offered by the ‘mobility turn’ and ‘relational regions’, this paper assesses the usefulness of place-based development (PBD) approaches in addressing contemporary planning challenges of mobility and borders. Through a case study of the Latrobe Valley's ‘Industry and Employment Roadmap’, this paper concludes that PBD approaches to regional planning offer a means of recognising: (1) both mobility and place in processes of regional development; and (2) the fluid nature of borders in these processes.

Keywords:

• mobility turn
• relational regions
• place-based development
• Australia