GEOG 256 9 19 13 Lecture 5 Outline of Last Lecture I Ethical Issues in Sustainability Why Care II Why fairness matters in sustainability III What Kinds of Fairness Are There Outline of Current Lecture I What do we mean by sustainable cities II A Vision of Urban Sustainability III Cities Advantages and Challenges Current Lecture I What do we mean by sustainable cities a Intro to special issue on Sustainable Cities i Cities can t be sustained by using only the resources inside its boundaries so we seek cities where needs are met without imposing unsustainable demands on local or global resources and systems ii It is not cities themselves but specific production consumption patterns within cities that threaten sustainability And urban form affects them iii Consumption by the upper middle class groups are the greatest threat to sustainability this becomes a city issue insofar as they live and cities and draw on city enterprises for their goods and services b Why focus on cities i Its where the people are and where future growth will occur The Urban Century 1 Urban first exceeded Rural within last five years ii They re the epicenter for resource use with an enormous global footprint These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute 1 Cities use 75 of the earth s resources but occupy just 2 of its surface 2 London requires 125x its surface area to sustain itself iii They re a focus for GHG issues 1 Cities emit 80 of CO2 2 Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research says the fate of the Earth s climate is intrinsically linked to how our cities develop over the coming decades iv Their populations are growing fast but they develop land even faster c Takeaway i Sustainability is concerned with Cities because 1 We re now an urban world 2 Cities use resources very intensively and are a major though not only source of pressure on the environment 3 Cities have certain advantages that create opportunities for sustainability like their compactness inventiveness and dynamic markets II A Vision of Urban Sustainability a To end our dependence on oil based transport focus on the local rather than global walkability transit centers teleconferencing local food distributed renewable energy etc b Shift from cities as linear resource extracting machines and logistics hubs that facilitate widely dispersed global trade ows to metabolic systems that exist within and in balance with the earth s ecology and in recognition of the planet s finite resources c Shift our economic and political priorities and see energy security and environmental health rather than economic growth as our society s bottom line d Four Models i Self Reliant Cities reduce impacts beyond your region smaller scale decentralized design with nature Ecotopia ii Redesigning Cities reduce reliance on fossil fuels via density mixing uses insulation sunlight Portland iii Externally Dependent Cities Maintain current path toward wealth to address environmental and justice issues Innovate with technology substitute human for natural capital Use pricing and extend property rights Tucson iv Fair Share Cities Compensate and regulate to ensure waste and extraction is fairly distributed and consider carrying capacity of host recipient environments E g the city buys and restores rural land harmed by timber harvesting for urban uses e Planning Response The 5 C s i Compactness grow up not out ii Completeness self reliance reuse neighborhood land use mixing iii Conservation natural features iv Comfort public spaces for peds v Collaboration III Cities Advantages and Challenges a Advantages i Land use efficiency less land per capita ii Large enough markets to support niche innovations green roofs iii Distributional Efficiency cheaper reclaimed water distribution less transmission waste iv Potential for Local Production and Consumption efficient waste reuse round put waste heat usage v Transit options vi Social economy nonprofits citizen groups b Challenges i Intense local impact e g local watersheds pollution hotspots ii Impacts extend far beyond their borders and their jurisdictions iii Congestion costs crowding suburban small town dreams c 9 Key Variables that determine interactions between cities and the environment i Urban form density mix diversity nucleation ii Greening open space connectivity food production iii Site planning and urban design sensitive lands shading pedestrian friendliness health and exercise iv Infrastructure transport energy supply water reclamation v Architecture building tech site planning vi Property mgt chemicals invasive species vii Production processes material use roundput viii Household behavior and consumption vehicle choice ix Governance and collaboration regional consensus d Impediments to change i Culture where auto freedom ii Post industrial consumerism iii Suburbia as the dominant value iv Powerful non state actors who determine cities economies land use and environmental futures e What will spur change i Optimistic tales Saving San Francisco Bay Mid 18th century Paris from cholera to water light and air ii Leadership Engaged Responsible Citizenry triggered by threat and response