In/formal interface: an exploration of Indigenous planning and informality

Abstract

This thesis sets out to identify a possible linkage between the concept of informality and Indigenous planning, and explore a role for planners in that linkage. It takes as a jumping-off point a 2010 Indigenous Planning Studio project in which two Master of City Planning (MCP) students assisted the Fisher River Cree Nation in developing street names and addresses for their reserve community, an exercise later determined to be an example of planners working with informality. Ways in which planners may contribute to the fostering of more useful relationships between more and less formal systems are also explored. The thesis looks at the extent to which embracing urban informality and making it part of the standard discourse on planning could help make the planning more relevant and improve its usefulness at the intersection between formality and informality.