Univ. Prof. Dr. Benjamin Davy passed away

"Landscape Planning is Planning!"

With deep sorrow and sadness, we bid farewell to Benjamin Davy, who passed away on January 24, 2025, at the age of 68.

Born in Vienna in 1956, Benjamin was one of the most influential spatial planners and legal scholars of our time. With his interdisciplinary approach, he linked the fields of environmental law, land policy, and spatial planning for decades, leaving a lasting impact.

He studied law at the University of Vienna, where he earned his doctorate in 1980 and completed his habilitation in 1990 with the thesis "Risk Prevention in Facility Law." At the same time, he was academically active at the Institute of Legal Sciences in the Faculty of Spatial Planning and Architecture at TU Vienna. In 1997, he moved to TU Dortmund as a visiting professor, where he was appointed Professor of Land Policy, Land Management, and Surveying in 1998—a position he filled with great passion until his retirement in 2019.

Beyond his academic work, Benjamin was committed to the profession as President of the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP) and the International Academic Association on Planning, Law, and Property Rights (PLPR). 

Benjamin was an extraordinary professor who had a unique ability to connect and communicate complex topics in spatial planning. Issues of justice, tenancy law, site selection for waste plants, international perspectives on land policy, or planning theory -  such as polyrationality and the decolonization of European planning science - were core themes of his work. He challenged conventional ways of thinking, asked precise questions that opened new perspectives, and encouraged his conversation partners to go beyond their limits and demanded creative thinking. He was especially passionate about mentoring young researchers, serving as a dedicated PhD promotor and -advisor for many years.

Benjamin was not only a humorous and outspoken scholar at conferences, online meetings, and discussions but also an empathetic colleague who treated everyone—regardless of academic rank or status—with appreciation and respect. Besides academia, his passions included music and art: he was an enthusiastic guitar player and loved photography, both he passionately integrated into his lectures.

With his passing, we lose a warm-hearted colleague who enriched every academic debate and personal conversation with his colorful clothing, his smile, his intellect, and his contagious curiosity.

Thank you, Ben!