{"title":"From “smart growth” to “frontier” intensification: density, YIMBYism, and the development of garden suites in Toronto","authors":"Susannah Bunce","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1196428","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1196428","url":null,"abstract":"Toronto's official intensification policy has directed increased density primarily through residential development over the last 20 years. Recently, new intensification efforts have focused on increasing density in existing residential neighborhoods through so-called “gentle density” and “missing middle” built form, as a new “frontier” of intensification. These efforts have included a focus on the production of garden suites on residential properties. In this short intervention, I suggest that Yes-In-My-Backyard narratives, that celebrate intensification, raise problematic arguments under the guise of sustainable urbanism and liberal progressive politics which foreclose important critiques of intensification. I argue that increased YIMBYism and new intensification efforts in Toronto are entwined with homeownership wealth-building and market-oriented property development.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":"50 43","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41285624","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
J. Barke, V. Boelman, Vinkha Khairunnisa, Salma Shah
{"title":"Young people's strategies for navigating education, employment, and housing: a case study from Corby UK","authors":"J. Barke, V. Boelman, Vinkha Khairunnisa, Salma Shah","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1149901","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1149901","url":null,"abstract":"Introduction This paper reports the findings of research activity carried out as part of the UPLIFT project in Corby, United Kingdom. The project aimed to understand young people's experiences of education, employment and housing, and determine how young people navigate these domains, make choices and develop strategies within what is available to them. Through understanding the opportunities and strategies that young people employ across these domains, our aim was to consider how young people might engage locally to co-create a reflexive policy agenda. Methods We worked with peer researchers in Corby and interviewed local people (n = 40) and policy makers (n = 7) about the local context in Corby, and analyzed data, exploring themes. Results Findings highlighted the importance of young people understanding how systems work locally and suggest that young people, and their families, need greater support understanding how they can engage with and change systems. Discussion There needs to be better, easily accessible guidance developed around the support and opportunities that are available locally. Our research underlines the need to engage with young people in policy making to develop effective robust policy that works in a real-world context.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46061533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Environmental movements in a material world. A relational perspective on single-use plastic in Penzance, UK","authors":"Yusif Idies, Samuel Mössner","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1156815","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1156815","url":null,"abstract":"In the discursive battle about the big and important ideas, some topics are considered more important than others and more likely to mobilize society. More recently, marine plastic pollution has become a key topic for environmental movements. In this study, we aimed to contribute to a more detailed understanding of how specific issues of sustainability are brought forth. Conceptually, we argue that recourse to relational theories from science and technology studies might help to strengthen the conceptualization of social movement research. By drawing on the concept of “boundary objects”, we extend the range of social movement approaches in order to better understand how the process of framing is put to work materially. The focus on boundary objects can therefore explain the selective formation of environmental discourses and policies when applied to the field of environmental protection and sustainability.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41444997","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Erik Lind, Thomas Prade, Johanna Sjöman Deak, A. Levinsson, H. Sjöman
{"title":"How green is an urban tree? The impact of species selection in reducing the carbon footprint of park trees in Swedish cities","authors":"Erik Lind, Thomas Prade, Johanna Sjöman Deak, A. Levinsson, H. Sjöman","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1182408","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1182408","url":null,"abstract":"Introduction Planting trees in urban areas can mitigate some of the emissions generated in cities by carbon sequestration (annual uptake of CO2 through the process of photosynthesis) and carbon storage (amount of carbon stored in the tree's biomass throughout its lifespan). The aim of this study was to calculate the carbon footprint from nursery production to final establishment of different tree species grown for planting in urban parks in a northern European context. Material and methods The analysis included a cradle-to-gate approach and investigated the amount of carbon the adult trees needed to sequester in order to compensate for initial carbon emissions and which temporal perspectives are of concern. Greenhouse gas emissions were estimated based on an inventory of consumption of fuels, energy, materials and other production inputs during cultivation, delivery, planting and establishment of three different tree species in three different locations in Sweden. The tree species considered in the analysis (Salix alba, Quercus rubra, Pinus sylvestris) were selected due to significant differences in their growth rates. Salix alba is a competitive strategist in resource-rich habitats, and is proficient at converting these resources into vigorous growth. Pinus sylvestris is a pronounced stress strategist with good ability to handle resource-limited habitats, and invests in traits accordingly, resulting in significantly slower development. Quercus rubra has its main distribution in cool and moderately resource-rich habitats, but has relatively high stress tolerance and can be considered intermediate between the other two species in terms of growth rate. Results and discussion The results showed that within 16 years of planting, all species in all three cities, except Pinus sylvestris planted in Umeå, compensated for initial carbon emissions, i.e. showed net absorption of CO2 after emissions from cultivation, delivery, planting and establishment of the trees had been deducted. There was a clear link between the time by which compensation of initial carbon emissions was achieved and growth rate of the different species, with the fast-growing Salix alba showing the best results. The single largest source of emissions among all activities carried out during cultivation, delivery and planting of all species, regardless of the city in which they were planted, was fuel consumption during tree planting.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43681875","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Critical barriers and countermeasures to urban regeneration from the stakeholder perspective: a literature review","authors":"Zhiwei Liao, Menglan Liu","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1115648","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1115648","url":null,"abstract":"Urban renewal involves a wide range of stakeholders with diverse expectations and interests. Conflicts in urban renewal projects arise from intricate relationships among multiple stakeholders, hindering the urban renewal process. With a large amount of current literature examining the barriers, difficulties, and solutions in urban regeneration, a critical review is required to holistically summarize these main concerns and challenges from the stakeholder perspective. Based on 347 journal papers collected from the Web of Science core database, this study investigates the development, trajectory, and tendency of prior studies through a bibliometric analysis. Then, a critical review is documented with eight critical barriers in the economic and social aspects from the stakeholder perspective. To address these issues, this study proposes a strategic framework for value creation, collaborative governance, and benefit sharing. Accordingly, future research agendas are also presented. This study could provide researchers with a systematic understanding of the critical barriers and potential strategies in urban regeneration fields.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47197250","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Humanistic geography in an indigenous community of Mexico: Santa Catarina Lachatao","authors":"A. C. Garcia-Luna Romero, Angélica Quiroga-Garza","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.968406","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.968406","url":null,"abstract":"Introduction The present study aim was to rethink the geographical reasoning of everyday life toward a new understanding of knowing how to think about space through an interdisciplinary approach, architecture-psychology. This allowed establishing logical relations in spatial and socio-spatial distributions and uses of social phenomena, typical of Santa Catarina Lachatao, an indigenous Mexican community in Sierra Norte Zapoteca. Methods Based on ethnographic qualitative interdisciplinary research methods along with a total of three visits lasting 15 weeks, the daily experience of people and their community in different times and spaces, experiences, perspectives, and prejudices, were studied. The geographical approach (cartographies) reflects the social construction of the spatial components as the basic understanding of the territory from everyday life. In this study we worked on indigenous citizenship and its territory, analyzing, and contrasting social phenomena such as power-subjection, wealth-poverty, and exclusion-inclusion that transversally allow us to reflect and understand some of the characteristics of diversity and territoriality of the indigenous communities in Mexico. Results Characteristics that predominating in indigenous communities was recognized and featured. This was observed in the social production of their public space which evidence intergenerational pride and sense of community and belonging and their commitment to preserve their life project sustaining their space, community, and traditions. The natural rural context emerges from the interplay between the natural landscape and the built environment (in constant expansion). The bodies of water are respected and protected by the community and the original crossings are still preserved as precious resources, just as any other natural element. Landscape takes precedence over the irregular built environment, reflected in the urban trace. Discussion Developing interdisciplinary research -architecture and psychology–allowed studying the community development of a Mexican indigenous community, respectfully approaching diversity and territoriality of Santa Catarina Lachatao, Oaxaca. Societies must be understood in and by means of space. Public policy is crucial to strengthen the autonomy and configuration of indigenous communities, warranting their active participation in the design and evaluation of government programs that favor the sustainable use of their lands and natural resources, as well as the preservation of their values and traditions. The principles of justice are chosen behind a veil of ignorance. John Rawls","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48189306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Toward urban-rural linkage development: contribution of climate-adaptive agroecology in the lower Chao Phraya River Basin, Thailand","authors":"P. Hongsprabhas","doi":"10.3389/frsc.2023.1146087","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1146087","url":null,"abstract":"This case study proposed a hypothesis on initiating urban-rural co-development using food as a medium to drive the transformation of the food systems and sustainable consumption. The guiding principles of the United Nations Habitat to the water-retention areas under the nature-based solution (NBS) for flood mitigation in Thailand's central region, the main rice-growing area, were applied. This study reviewed the partnerships of primary institutions, namely public, private, and universities, supporting and intertwining with civil society through Thai cultural and social norms after the 1997 economic crisis. The critical aspects included the sufficiency economy (SE) philosophy at the household level as a foundation of national policies. Recent policies and measures on food and nutrition security, alternative farming practices, and incentives to increase sustainable agroecology were prioritized post-COVID-19. This research suggests additional measures enabling agroecology and landscape improvement in rural areas connecting the cities of Ayutthaya and Bangkok to enhance market access for small producers and consumers in rural and urban areas with limited resources. A better community-based adaptation, ecological outcomes, and sustainable social inclusion in flood-prone lowlands could support Thailand's food sovereignty and capacity-building as one of the world's major food exporters under climate extremes.","PeriodicalId":33686,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Sustainable Cities","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-05-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43660458","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}