As the 2023–2026 mandate of the AESOP Excellence in Education Board (EEB) comes to a close, AESOP would like to express its sincere gratitude to Professor Tijana Dabović (University of Belgrade) for her dedicated leadership as Chair of the Board and for her outstanding contribution to strengthening excellence in planning education across the Association.
During her mandate, Tijana led the continued development of the AESOP Quality Recognition (QR) Programme, building on the work of previous Boards while introducing a series of important innovations aimed at ensuring that the programme remains responsive to the evolving challenges of planning education. Under her leadership, the Quality Recognition criteria and guidance were revised and aligned with the updated AESOP Core Curriculum, strengthening their relevance for contemporary planning education and emerging themes such as socio-spatial justice, artificial intelligence and the changing role of planning practice.
A strong emphasis was also placed on dialogue and mutual learning across the AESOP community. Through workshops, roundtables and presentations at the Heads of Schools Meetings and AESOP Congresses, the Excellence in Education Board further promoted the Quality Recognition Programme as a collaborative process centred on reflection, peer exchange and continuous improvement.
One of the most significant achievements of this mandate has been the publication of the AESOP Quality Recognition Catalogue 2019–2025 – Sharing Excellence in Planning Education. Edited by Tijana Dabović together with the members of the Excellence in Education Board, the Catalogue brings together 21 planning programmes from across Europe that have successfully completed the AESOP Quality Recognition process, showcasing innovative pedagogical practices, diverse educational approaches and inspiring examples of excellence in planning education.
The publication represents an important milestone for the AESOP Quality Recognition Programme. Beyond celebrating recognised programmes, it provides an open-access resource for planning educators, illustrating how planning schools across Europe are responding to contemporary societal challenges while fostering innovation, critical thinking, collaboration and professional responsibility.
AESOP warmly thanks Tijana for her vision, commitment, enthusiasm and tireless work in leading the Excellence in Education Board over the past three years. Her contribution has significantly strengthened AESOP's role in promoting high-quality planning education and supporting continuous dialogue among planning schools across Europe.
Finally, AESOP is pleased to announce that, from 1 August 2026, Professor Christopher Maidment (University of Reading) will assume the role of Chair of the AESOP Excellence in Education Board, leading the Board into its next chapter.
