Culture, Recognition, and the Negotiation of Difference

Recognizing, understanding, and engaging difference, diversity, and cultural heterogeneity in creative and productive ways requires cultural competency. In this article, we first define culture, difference, and equality as a platform to call for a broader conception of culture in the planning profession than that implicit in multiculturalism. Second, we discuss how a broader appreciation of culture is the foundation of planning for intercultural communities, which provides a new rationale for understanding why cultural competency skills are central to planning education. Finally, we offer a framework for planning schools to integrate cultural competency themes across the curriculum.