City governments and urban universities have a critical role to play in advancing sustainability transformations. This requires building long-term relationships and deep relationship development work that allows for collaboration on a broad range of sustainability-related projects.
Recent research in the fields of resilience, social innovation and sustainability transitions studies shares a common interest in understanding societal change towards sustainable transformations. One of these approaches focuses on amplification processes that increase the impact of initiatives.
Sustainable Design
Sustainable design is an increasingly important and interdisciplinary field of study. It encompasses engineering, the natural sciences, economics, political science and the social sciences.
https://www.fredeo.com/general/sustainable-architecture-and-its-transformative-impact-in-the-uk/ Sustainable designs are those that are environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. They utilize recycled materials and reduce energy consumption. They are also designed to last and can be reused, repaired or biodegraded when they are no longer useful.
Sustainable design can be used in various ways, from building and planning to community development and disaster preparedness. Some examples are:
Materials
The building sector uses the largest amount of raw materials and generates the majority of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. It is therefore essential that it finds avenues of reform.
Sustainable buildings rely on the use of ecologically friendly, healthy and durable materials. This also helps to minimize operational energy usage and carbon emissions.
Sustainable materials may cost more up front, but the lower long-term costs and energy savings help to offset this initial investment. One example of such a material is western hemlock, which has gained popularity among high-net-worth individuals looking for second homes. This wood is sourced locally, which supports local economies and reduces the impact on the environment.
Energy
Sustainable construction aims to reduce the use of natural resources like energy and water in the building process. It also focuses on reducing the overall operational impacts of a building through embodied and operational energy.
In addition to saving money, these buildings are better for the environment and occupants. They produce less waste, are easier to maintain and provide a sense of pride.
Many of these initiatives are supported by networks. These networks help to build knowledge (Climate-KIC), provide inspiration and support innovation in a particular place or sector of the economy (Sharable Cities Network, Eco-village network). They also focus on the development of transformative innovations.
Water
Water is a magical substance that brings life and growth to everything on Earth. It is also the universal solvent—it dissolves more substances than any other liquid, from Kool-Aid to pharmaceuticals and industrial waste.
Water pollution sickens and kills millions each year, particularly in low-income communities that live close to polluting factories. Water is also a major source of climate change-related extreme weather events.
SWP’s holistic water security work is informed by civil engineering expertise with experience in more than 25 developing countries, including flood and cyclone protection; operation and maintenance of large dams; irrigation; river basin management; and water governance. Our system-thinking approach addresses water’s social nature to design robust solutions.
Indoor Air Quality
Considering that people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors, healthy air quality is vitally important. Poor ventilation, toxic chemical fumes, secondhand smoke and radon are all common contaminants found in homes and workplaces.
These chemicals can aggravate respiratory conditions and cause headaches, sinus congestion, eye irritation, fatigue and nausea. Those with preexisting health conditions and children are most vulnerable to these pollutants.
Some of the most significant sources of bad IAQ are cigarette smoke, furnace and stove emissions, vapors from newer household products and cleaning materials, paints, pesticides and household chemicals. Other problems stem from improper insulation and sealing of doors, windows, and ventilation systems.
Community
There is a strong link between sustainability and community. Consumers play a key role in promoting sustainability by selecting environmentally preferable products and educating builders, designers and architects.
A ‘community vitality’ perspective (Holscher 2020a, b; Ziervogel 2021) emphasizes that citizens and communities can play an essential role in addressing societal challenges by (re-)shaping urban environments, designing bottom-up innovations and creating enabling conditions for transformative action.
A broad field of grassroots initiatives, citizen collectives and transformative experiments demonstrates the diverse and complex nature of such processes. Hence, it would be difficult to capture them in a definition of ‘community vitality’ that is too narrow or rigid.
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