This course provides an overview of the field of planning theory with the purpose of answering a key question: How can urban planning play an active role in creating more sustainable, just and democratic cities? The course is organized around: 1) reading and discussing classic and contemporary texts in planning theory and the concept of urban citizenship and 2) applying concepts and theories derived from these readings and discussions in the analysis of real-world urban problems, policies and projects. The course draws from diverse planning traditions and critiques, theoretical approaches and geographical locations. The course is intended for PhD and master's level students from the policy, design, management, social sciences and humanities disciplines interested in urban planning, public policy, urban politics, urban design, international development and environmental studies. The course is developed around five complementary goals: a) To provide a deep understanding of the theoretical foundations that shape the practice of planning in a variety of contexts. b) To analyze planning as a practice-oriented discipline that in acts “in the real world” and as a “space of knowledge and intellectual production” with distinct methodological and ethical concerns. c) To define and examine planning not only as “the work that planners do”, but also as a highly political space in which the state, citizens, social movements, private interests and non-human agents interact. d) To examine the theoretical and practical dimensions of the concept of urban citizenship as a framework to understand the practices of governing, managing and contesting material and political inequalities. e) To equip students with a conceptual toolkit for the critical analysis and/or design of planning and urban policy interventions based on their actual and potential contributions to social justice, inclusion and democracy.