Implementing land use change models in the developing world

Abstract

It is difficult for policy and decision makers to observe and quantify the implications of their land use policies and strategies and what it might or might not mean for a city's landscape a decade or more from now. The CSIR Spatial Planning Systems Support groups have over the past decades developed spatial planning support tools and technologies to support government planners in making decisions with regards to service delivery and spatial planning. The presentation and paper will focus on two recently adapted land use change models (Dyna-Clue and UrbanSIM) that have been successfully adapted to simulate future land use change policies in the various metro's across South-Africa. The presentation will focus on how these technologies together with advanced visualization allows the government to experiment and play with future scenarios to develop better spaces for all of its residence.