RTPI in Scotland's Annual Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture

29-Jun-09

Sir Patrick Geddes Return to RTPI in Scotland home-page

The Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture is held annually by RTPI in Scotland and the Saltire Society. Geddes is widely regarded as the founder of modern town planning. Born in 1854, his interest in the natural sciences led him to a professorship in botany at the University of Dundee, after which he developed his interest in sociology and town planning.

He lived most of his life in Edinburgh during which he established the Edinburgh Social Union; promoted a wide range of sympathetic redevelopment and conservation schemes the length of the Royal Mile, largely for university residential accommodation; founded a publishing company; founded the Franco-Scottish Society; became a major sponsor of the arts; developed summer schools; promoted international festivals; published seminal texts such as Cities in Evolution. He also spent time in India as Chair in Sociology at Bombay University and planned the Hebrew University at Jerusalem.

He finally retired to France where he founded the College des Ecossais in Montpellier. He was knighted in the year of his death in 1932.

The first lecture was held in 2004 to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Geddes' birth.

Next year's Lecture, 2011

Carolyn Steel, the architect and writer, is to give RTPI in Scotland's annual Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture 2011. The Lecture will be held at the Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, The Weston Link, The National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh on Wednesday 8th June 2011. To find out more about Carolyn and her book Hungry City ... view here

This year's Lecture, 2010

Peter Head OBE, Director of Planning and Integrated Urbanism at Arup, gave the Lecture on Sustainable Economic Development: towards the emerging Ecological Age at the Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh on Wedsnesday 21 April 2010. The text for the Lecture will be available shortly ... in the meantime view an earlier lecture given by Peter for the Institute of Civil Engineers via here.

Previous lectures 2004-09

2009

Patrick Geddes and the Scottish Generalist Tradition ... was given by Murdo Macdonald, Professor of History of Scottish Art, University of Dundee at the Royal Society of Edinburgh on Wednesday 20th May 2009. The full text of the lecture can be downloaded here

2008

Dr Harry Burns, Scotland's Chief Medical Officer - The Biological Consequences of Living in Adverse Circumstances ... a full transcript of the Lecture is not available but the issues raised are discussed in the CMO's latest Annual Report, Health in Scotland 2006. Also see an annotated Note of Dr Burns' 2008 Geddes Lecture kindly provided by John Rosser, Policy Officer with the National Trust for Scotland.

2007

Richard Wakeford - Wanted: Visionary planners to apply levers for a sustainable world

2006

Greg Lloyd - Planning and the Public Interest

2005

Raymond Young - Cities in Devolution

2004

Jonathon Porritt - Sustainable Development past and present

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