An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning.
An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town planner, regional planner, long-range planner, transportation planner, infrastructure planner, environmental planner, parks planner, physical planner, health planner, planning analyst, urban designer, community development director, economic development specialist, or other similar combinations. The Royal Town Planning Institute is the oldest professional body of town and urban planners founded in 1914 and the University of Liverpool established the first dedicated planning school in the world in 1909, followed by Harvard University in 1924. There also exists evidence of urban planners in ancient cities in Egypt, China, India, and the Mediterranean world. For instance, Hippodamus has often been accredited the title of "the father of city planning" in Aristotle's Book 2.
