Building a Meta-Framework to ‘Address’ Spatial Quality

Abstract

Spatial quality is a contested notion due mainly to its uneven conceptualization and methodological translation across fields in which space is a key concern. This article presents the building up of an inter- and transdisciplinary methodological meta-framework to analyse, assess and work towards spatial quality. It explains the thematic cross-reading of spatial quality across three fields (social innovation in territorial development, strategic spatial planning, urban design). By use of a relational approach connecting seven dimensions of spatial quality and its making, and building on the symbiotic strengths of the three fields, it formulates a meta-theoretical framework as the central piece of a coherent joined-up methodological guide to address spatial quality.