THE INSTITUTE

For a long time the urban plans have not been increasing because there were not appropriate accomplishments. Recently, the Federal Law nº 10.257/01 (Statute of the City) has brought new perspectives for the planning of the cities.

The creation of the Piracicaba Planning and Research Institute (IPPLAP) gives a great thing for the local power because it supplies the government with lasting planning instruments.

IPPLAP is a conclusion of a long local and regional process of planning, whose can be emphasized: the Directorial Develop Plan of 1991, approved in 1995 and now in revision; the formulation the Directorial Rural and Mobility Plans, also been done; the creation of the Capivari and Piracicaba Rivers Basins Intercity Consort; the Directorial Tourism Plan; the Directorial Water and Sewerage System Plan; the Environment Zoning and recently the Structural Plan of Beira-Rio Project. Many initiatives about environment preservation from society civil might be mentioned, mainly Piracicaba 2010 – Making the Future.

In these conditions, the planning resumes strategic function because it is derived oh the conception of State like an organism responsible for the social welfare and to keep social rights. Besides, the IPPLAP stimulate lasting prospective actions, whose main virtue is its capacity to analyze, to understand social dynamics and to foresee tendencies of the society. That is important to manage the development with rationalism. Planning and citizenship arte both concepts that IPPLAP is coming from: to plan to promote development and to keep rights.