No matter how much effort goes into trying to get people to understand the importance of sustainable development, cities aren't going to become more sustainable places until developers, their consultants, and planning authorities get on board. Even if the business case is made (and it has been made time and again*), that won't guarantee that things will change. And with growing political pressure to reduce carbon emissions, there still won't be change in the right direction unless there are guidelines and standards in place to point the way.
So I was excited to see a new edition of the UK Urban Design Compendium that now incorporates sustainability. It includes an explanation of urban design principles, over 100 case studies to show how they can be applied, and practical guidance on the steps that can be taken and barriers that need to be overcome during policy and project development to improve the quality of place delivered.
*The US Business Council for Sustainable Development has tons of information, and here's a report from SustainAbility specifically geared to the business case for sustainability in emerging markets.
Joburg's apparently a member of C40 (http://www.c40cities.org/), so I hope they start making some meaningful inroads in urban design around here.
Posted by: Carl | 11 October 2007 at 09:40 PM
Your post made me think about apartment buildings that have a concentration of people living in a zoned area, there is opportunity for recycling to be encouraged. Where I live in the Midwest, it would be so much easier to recycle if the apt homes were designed with adequate space and separated bins for sorting out trash.
Great links, thanks!
Posted by: Juliana | 12 October 2007 at 04:00 AM