Participation has been present in the Serbian legal framework in the domain of urban planning since the 1950s. Its scope and legal definition have evolved with the transition to democracy, markets and decentralised governance. In line with EU standards, Serbia introduced an additional level of participation in the form of early public inquiry in 2014. Still, participatory planning practice is often seen as a formality which lacks sufficient effect on the planning solution, and requires qualitative improvements in citizen and stakeholder involvement. The main aim of this paper is to suggest that the use of alternative methods of participation in the domains of informing, consultation and active participation may increase the effectiveness of participatory planning practice. Thus, this paper points out some examples of good practice, and argues for the importance of recognising the existing base of knowledge and expertise in order to respond to contemporary requirements in the field of urban planning.

In 2019, Serbia adopted its first national urban policy. This document was established through a communicative process during 2018–2019, formally encouraging urban governance as a practical innovation in Serbia’s planning doctrine. The main aim of this research is to explore institutional capacity development within a live setting of the policy formation process. The participants of this process are the primary subjects of the research. Data was collected through participatory events in four instances during the process. The concept of institutional capacity development is used in this paper as a basic framework to assess knowledge, relational and mobilisation capacity for urban governance. The main contribution of this paper is providing an understanding of the challenges and potentials for establishing urban governance practices in a post-socialist country planning context. Findings indicate an increase in the participants’ knowledge and understanding of governance instruments such that coordination and cooperation are continually unfolding. The identified challenges relate to the mobilisation capacity and fragility of institutions and resistance to change, while a need to deal with complexity and uncertainty remains present.

How public interest is constituted in planning practice varies according to the local context. Using state-socialist and post-socialist cases in Belgrade, Serbia, we explore the shift in the realization of public interest as a basis for planning standards regarding provision of public land use and services. The research looks at trends for planning standards on two case studies, and reveals the underlying norms of this local interpretation of public interest via interviews with planning professionals and residents. The results suggest not only the persistence of the top-down unitary approach to public interest in planning but also a deterioration in prescribed standards.

This chapter explores the evolution of spatial planning systems in the Western Balkans, in parallel to the changing geopolitical framework, from the communist regime, through the transition period and up to the ongoing integration into the European Union. Building on the evidence collected in the framework of the ESPON COMPASS project, as well as on over two decades of research on the matter, the authors reflect on the incremental consolidation of the administrative and legislative frameworks that allow for the practice of spatial planning in six countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. The chapter discusses and compares the main spatial planning instruments adopted at the national, subnational and local levels. We then underline similarities and differences between the various contexts and highlight the challenges that still characterise spatial planning in the Western Balkans.

At the global level, there is an awareness of the need to protect agricultural land from permanent physical loss through land-use change. Preservation of high-quality agricultural land is currently at the center of the international debates, including those of food safety. The main aim of this paper is to provide quantitative analysis of agricultural land-use change dynamics within the area of the Belgrade–Novi Sad highway corridor, as a distinct route that connects two largest cities in Serbia. The results in land-use change and the accompanying contextual aspects are observed between 1990 and 2018, i.e., within the four research periods: 1990–2000, 2000–2006, 2006–2012 and 2012–2018, using GIS-based analysis. The research methodology used Corine Land Cover and Urban Atlas data and revealed dynamics relating to the most influential land take directions during the ca. 30 years by the means of the land take indicator. The results were complemented with the qualitative content analysis of spatial and regulatory urban plans for the study area, as one of the land-use management instruments in Serbia. The findings indicate that the most intense agricultural land-use change to non-agricultural land occurred in the period 1990-2000 due to various drivers (vicinity of large cities, illegal construction, developed transport infrastructure), but also distinguish the role of spatial and urban planning documentation in promoting the new land take.

The paper focuses on the question of how the application of a multilevel, integrated, and territorial approach can contribute to the protection of cultural heritage through planning instruments in Serbia. The principles of territorialization, integration and digitalization highlighted in the recent strategic documents of the Republic of Serbia are related to international recommendations and theoretical concepts and analyzed with regards to the possibilities of their implementation in planning methodology. The case study is the spatial plan for the Djerdap National Park, a special purpose area with already recognized international and national importance. The research suggests that the encompassed cultural heritage, except the Roman limes, is still recognized at the level of individual entities. The study emphasizes the importance of aligning all levels of governance to safeguard the whole spatial entity rather than focusing solely on its particular areas. The international and national significance of the planning area contributes to the strengthening of awareness of heritage and its institutional protection. However, the vitality of the area, which is key to its sustainable development, comes from the local level. Planning documents contribute to the integration of local values and local communities into development programs and projects.