Michael Gunder (1954 – 14 March 2021) was an associate professor in the School of

Architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

and

Planning Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning is based on foresight, the fundamental capacity for mental time travel. Some researchers regard the evolution of forethought - the cap ...

at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

, and was a past president of the

New Zealand Planning Institute The New Zealand Planning Institute (NZPI) is a professional body for planners, resource managers, urban designers and environmental practitioners in New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. ...

. He had a BA (

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

), MA (Planning), both from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

(UBC) in Vancouver, and a PhD in Planning from the University of Auckland. In 2011 he was made a Fellow of the

. He was the managing editor of the academic journal ''

Planning Theory ''Planning Theory'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal that covers the field of city planning and land development. The editor-in-chief is Michael Gunder (University of Auckland) . The journal was established in 2002 and is published by ...

''. Gunder spent fifteen years working as a professional planner in government and as a consultant, prior to becoming an academic in 1994. He worked in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, the UK, and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. He was HOD of the Planning Department, University of Auckland, 1999–2001, and is the author of over 60 academic articles and monographs. His main areas of expertise include

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a Group decision-making, decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to Problem solving, solve or address relevant and problematic social issues, guided by a conceptio ...

review,

economic development In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...

transportation Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

and

strategic planning Strategic planning is the activity undertaken by an organization through which it seeks to define its future direction and makes decisions such as resource allocation aimed at achieving its intended goals. "Strategy" has many definitions, but it ...

, and his recent academic research was focused on the application of

poststructuralism Post-structuralism is a philosophical movement that questions the objectivity or stability of the various interpretive structures that are posited by structuralism and considers them to be constituted by broader systems of power. Although diffe ...

and

psychoanalytic theory Psychoanalytic theory is the theory of the innate structure of the human soul and the dynamics of personality development relating to the practice of psychoanalysis, a method of research and for treating of Mental disorder, mental disorders (psych ...

towards the understanding of planning practice and public policy formulation. Dr. Gunder died on March 14, 2021, at 67 years of age.

References

1954 births 2021 deaths New Zealand urban planners Academic staff of the University of Auckland Architecture educators Architects from Auckland {{NewZealand-academic-bio-stub