AESOP is pleased to announce that Professor Karina Pallagst will assume the role of President of the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP) on 1 August 2026.
Karina was elected during the 2025 Heads of Schools Meeting in Liverpool. In accordance with AESOP's governance structure, she has served throughout the past year as Vice-President, working closely with the Executive Committee and the current President in preparation for assuming the leadership of the Association.
From 1 August 2026, Karina will succeed Professor Maria Håkansson, whose presidency has been marked by a strong commitment to strengthening AESOP's international profile, fostering collaboration across the planning community, and promoting excellence in planning education and research.
Following the completion of her presidential mandate, Maria Håkansson will continue to serve the Association for a further year as Senior Vice-President, ensuring continuity and supporting the transition to the new leadership.
Professor Karina Pallagst, of RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau (Germany), has been an active and highly respected member of the AESOP community for many years. Through her longstanding engagement within the Association, she has made significant contributions to planning education, research and international collaboration, while serving in several leadership roles across AESOP.
As President, she will lead the Association through the next phase of its development, working together with the Executive Committee, the Council of Representatives, the Heads of Schools and the wider AESOP community to further strengthen AESOP's mission of promoting excellence in planning education, research and practice across Europe and beyond.
On behalf of the entire AESOP community, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to Maria Håkansson for her dedicated leadership, vision and unwavering commitment during her presidency, and for her willingness to continue supporting the Association as Senior Vice-President over the coming year.
At the same time, we warmly congratulate Karina Pallagst on taking on this important role and wish her every success as she begins her presidency.
We look forward to working with Karina as she leads AESOP into this new chapter.
