The purpose of this article is a comprehensive review of spatial and urban planning, and zoning in modern Russia. The starting point of the study is the experience of territorial, urban planning and zoning of the Soviet Union, which has achieved significant success in this area of activity. To achieve this goal, we used the books of modern Russian researchers and the author’s publications of this article, as well as materials posted on the Internet, applied philosophical and scientific approaches and research methods: systemic, dialectic, socio-humanitarian, anthropological, environmental, aesthetic and cybernetic approaches, as well as methods of observation, analysis, synthesis, analogy, comparison, generalization. As a result of the study, many negative phenomena and mistakes made in the territorial planning, zoning and urban development of post-Soviet Russia were revealed: the system was lost, the laws of dialectics are violated, there is no synergy between state structures and civil society, there is an excessive concentration of the population in Moscow and the Moscow region, it isn’t possible to provide comfortable and safe living conditions for each person and, the most importantly, environmental problems in cities and neighboring territories become more acute.
Introduction: drawing lessons from international policy-transfer initiatives in regional and urban development and spatial planning