This issue of 'OASE' considers contemporary processes and environments in which the quality of (public) architecture is negotiated. How do state or city architects, urban quality commissions, or design competitions ensure the quality of regional planning? What is the importance of the exchanges and negotiations between designers, experts, mediators, and other stakeholders? And how do these ‘settings’ fit into the evolving frameworks of architectural culture, urban or infrastructural policy, and the political economy?