Formerly the Institute of Environmental Planning, SURP was established in 1965 through Republic Act 4341 as an academic unit of U.P. Diliman. Its establishment was consonance with the declared policy of government to assist in the study and solution of development programs and facilitate the realization of development goals. The school library was established in 1968. The library provides a wide array of learning resources to support the School’s functions of conducting academic programs in planning; providing training courses, seminars, workshops in cooperation with other government agencies in carrying out research activities designed to solve problems of development particularly on settlement patterns and environmental studies. The library also supports the objective of the school to strengthen and assist government agencies as well as private organizations in studying and solving planning and development problems; to facilitate implementation development  proposals and national, regional and local levels; to provide assistance in improving the state of human settlements and the environment through coordinated, comprehensive development studies and plans make available a pool of professional urban and regional planners to carry out the national policy of comprehensive planning and development. The library also serves as the venue through which faculty members, students and staff may keep abreast with current developments in the field of planning and development.