John Friedmann

Who is John Friedmann?

John Friedmann is an Honorary Professor in the School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, and Professor Emeritus in the School of Public Policy and Social Research at UCLA. He was founding professor of the Program for Urban Planning in the Graduate School of Architecture and Planning at UCLA and served as its head for a total of 14 years between 1969 and 1996.

In 1966 he developed the core-periphery four-stage model of regional development, explaining that "where economic growth is sustained over long time periods, its incidence works towards a progressive integration of the space economy". Nineteen years later, his article "The World City Hypothesis" generated a stream of research in economic geography, development studies, and planning. His 1987 book, Planning in the Public Domain: From Knowledge to Action, is widely used as a text in planning schools throughout the world.

In 1988, Friedmann received the Distinguished Planning Educator Award from the American Collegiate Schools of Planning.