| 1. |
- Berghauser Pont, Meta, 1972, et al.
(författare)
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Systematic review and comparison of densification effects and planning motivations
- 2021
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - : Ubiquity Press, Ltd.. - 2632-6655. ; 2:1, s. 378-401
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Do higher urban densities contribute to more sustainable cities and communities? This paper examines the effectiveness of higher density (as a means) for achieving sustainable urban development (the goal) following three lines of enquiry. First, a systematic review of the scientific literature (n = 229 peer-reviewed empirical studies) is presented on the effects of urban density. Second, the motivations for increasing urban density are studied in a systematic review of Swedish planning practices based on the comprehensive urban plans in 59 municipalities. Third, these two studies are compared to find matches and mismatches between evidence and practice. Although positive effects exist for public infrastructure, transport and economics, there are also considerable negative environmental, social and health impacts. This creates a challenging task for urban planners to assess the trade-offs involving densification and accommodate current urbanisation rates. Some topics are found to be over-represented in research (transport effects), seldom discussed in practice (environmental impact), and misaligned when comparing motives and evidence (social impact). Furthermore, for some topics, urban density thresholds are found that are important because they may explain some of the divergences in the results between studies. PRACTICE RELEVANCE The transfer of knowledge from research to planning practice is a serious concern as planning strategies are not aligned with scientific evidence. Planning practice in Sweden is more positive about the contribution of higher density to sustainable urban development than the results of empirical studies warrant. The largest deviation is found in relation to the social impacts of higher density where the planning arguments are not aligned with the evidence. Several reported negative effects of densification (e.g. water management, recreational infrastructure, biodiversity) are not sufficiently accounted for in Sweden’s planning policy and strategy. The narrow planning focus on decarbonising cities and densification needs to be broadened to ensure cities are resilient against the effects of climate change and include mitigation strategies to reduce negative social, environmental and health impacts. The findings can be used to develop evidence-based planning strategies. Other countries can apply this process to assess their planning strategies.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Francart, Nicolas, 1993-, et al.
(författare)
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Sharing indoor space: stakeholders’ perspectives and energy metrics
- 2020
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - : Ubiquity Press, Ltd.. - 2632-6655. ; , s. 70-85
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The sharing of indoor space can improve space and energy efficiency. The drivers and barriers to space-sharing initiatives are investigated from the perspectives of building users and building sector practitioners, based on interviews and a workshop. The role of energy performance metrics in promoting space efficiency is further analysed through a literature review. From the users’ perspective, space sharing can be understood through the interplay between tangible aspects (e.g. concrete benefits derived from sharing), organisational aspects (e.g. common decision processes and conflict resolution) and social aspects (e.g. group identity and consensus on appropriate behaviours). From the perspective of architects and property owners, shareable spaces require features such as flexibility and multifunctionality. The design of such spaces is limited by regulatory issues (e.g. building regulations poorly accommodate shared facilities) and business-related issues. One such issue is that building performance metrics normalised based on floor area do not incentivise the efficient use of space. A review of complementary metrics is provided, covering parameters such as number of users, layout, time of use, etc. Each metric serves a particular purpose; therefore, a set of complementary metrics can be used to support decisions at different phases of the building’s life cycle. Practice relevanceImproving space efficiency (e.g. by sharing indoor space) is a key strategy to meet simultaneously the future demand for facilities in cities and fulfil environmental objectives such as a reduction of climate change impact in the building sector. A clearer understanding of the specificities of space sharing is provided from the perspectives of building users and practitioners. This will assist practitioners to understand the needs of other stakeholders. Regulatory and business-related barriers to space-sharing initiatives are highlighted as a first step towards overcoming these barriers. Guidance is provided on complementary energy performance metrics appropriate for space efficiency. These metrics can be used to support various decisions during the different stages of a building’s life cycle.
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| 4. |
- Habert, Guillaume, et al.
(författare)
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Carbon budgets for buildings: harmonising temporal, spatial and sectoral dimensions
- 2020
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - : Ubiquity Press, Ltd.. - 2632-6655. ; 1:1, s. 429-452
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Target values for creating carbon budgets for buildings are important for developing climate-neutral building stocks. A lack of clarity currently exists for defining carbon budgets for buildings and what constitutes a unit of assessment—particularly the distinction between production-and consumption-based accounting. These different perspectives on the system and the function that is assessed hinder a clear and commonly agreed definition of ‘carbon budgets’ for building construction and operation. This paper explores the processes for establishing a carbon budget for residential and non-residential buildings. A detailed review of current approaches to budget allocation is presented. The temporal and spatial scales of evaluation are considered as well as the distribution rules for sharing the budget between parties or activities. This analysis highlights the crucial need to define the temporal scale, the roles of buildings as physical artefacts and their economic activities. A framework is proposed to accommodate these different perspectives and spatio-temporal scales towards harmonised and comparable cross-sectoral budget definitions. Policy relevance The potential to develop, implement and monitor greenhouse gas-related policies and strategies for buildings will depend on the provision of clear targets. Based on global limits, a carbon budget can establish system boundaries and scalable targets. An operational framework is presented that clarifies greenhouse gas targets for buildings in the different parts of the world that is adaptable to the context and circumstances of a particular place. A carbon budget can enable national regulators to set feasible and legally binding requirements. This will assist the many different stakeholders responsible for decisions on buildings to coordinate and incorporate their specific responsibility at one specific level or scale of activity to ensure overall compliance. Therefore, determining a task specific carbon budget requires an appropriate management of the global carbon budget to ensure that specific budgets overlap, but that the sum of them is equal to the available global budget without double-counting.
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| 5. |
- Jack, Tullia, et al.
(författare)
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The Sustainability Implications of Single Occupancy Households
- 2021
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - 2632-6655.
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Single occupancy households consume more resources per capita, and demographics suggest single occupancy is now widespread in many countries. Environmental policies need to adjust to include per capita consumption to account for occupancy and efficient use of resources. Diana Ivanova, Tullia Jack, Milena Büchs and Kirsten Gram-Hanssen explain how the sharing of resources at domestic, neighbourhood and urban scales can have positive environmental and social impacts.
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| 6. |
- Karvonen, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Data politics in the built environment
- 2023
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - 2632-6655. ; 4:1, s. 920-926
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Buildings and cities are increasingly being reconfigured and re-imagined by flows of data. Smart homes and cities, digitally networked infrastructure services, shared mobility programmes and autonomous vehicles, surveillance and security systems, and urban control centres are a few of the many examples of how data are emerging as an influential driver of urban development processes. The aim of this special issue is to enhance our collective understanding of the practices, politics and power implications of data-driven buildings and cities. How are data generated, metabolised and gathered in the built environment? Who designs and governs these data flows, and to what end? Who and what are enrolled in the datafication of buildings and cities? What forms and types of data are collected, and what is ignored in data flows at and across different scales? What are the broader implications for social justice and equity? This editorial overviews the main issues of data politics for buildings and cities, summarises the four articles that comprise this special issue, and concludes with recommendations for policy, design and future research. While the contributors identify multiple negative aspects of datafication, they also suggest pathways to inform more progressive and emancipatory futures.
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| 7. |
- Koch, Max, et al.
(författare)
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Structural barriers to sufficiency: the contribution of research on elites
- 2024
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Ingår i: Buildings & Cities. - 2632-6655. ; 5:1, s. 268-282
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ‘Sufficiency’ has become a key term within sustainability science. The satisfaction of basic human needs for all and for multiple generations is only possible if coupled to the implementation of ecological ceilings that prevent wealthy groups from disproportionate production and consumption patterns and energy use. While much sufficiency research has focused on the poor and how to provide corresponding social floors (i.e. an adequate level of sufficiency), this conceptual paper theorises structural barriers to implementing ecological ceilings for production and consumption by considering research on elites. The argument is illustrated with examples from urban spaces that are increasingly structured to accommodate the preferences of economic elites. A better scholarly understanding of the structural barriers to sufficiency dissemination can be facilitated through a systematic account of the political, social and symbolic strategies deployed by elites to accumulate and legitimise power. Conversely, a consideration of sufficiency principles would also be beneficial for research on elites, which has so far focused on social inequality and sidelined the ecological crisis. The discussion highlights how research on sufficiency and elite consumption may interact to be mutually beneficial. A research agenda is proposed to understand economic elites as barriers to the dissemination of sufficiency principles.
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| 8. |
- Koch, Max, et al.
(författare)
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Structural barriers to sufficiency: the contribution of research on elites
- 2024
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - 2632-6655. ; 5:1, s. 268-282
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ‘Sufficiency’ has become a key term within sustainability science. The satisfaction of basic human needs for all and for multiple generations is only possible if coupled to the implementation of ecological ceilings that prevent wealthy groups from disproportionate production and consumption patterns and energy use. While much sufficiency research has focused on the poor and how to provide corresponding social floors (i.e. an adequate level of sufficiency), this conceptual paper theorises structural barriers to implementing ecological ceilings for production and consumption by considering research on elites. The argument is illustrated with examples from urban spaces that are increasingly structured to accommodate the preferences of economic elites. A better scholarly understanding of the structural barriers to sufficiency dissemination can be facilitated through a systematic account of the political, social and symbolic strategies deployed by elites to accumulate and legitimise power. Conversely, a consideration of sufficiency principles would also be beneficial for research on elites, which has so far focused on social inequality and sidelined the ecological crisis. The discussion highlights how research on sufficiency and elite consumption may interact to be mutually beneficial. A research agenda is proposed to understand economic elites as barriers to the dissemination of sufficiency principles.
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| 9. |
- Legeby, Ann, 1972-, et al.
(författare)
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Social values and social infrastructures : a multi-perspective approach to place
- 2023
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - : Ubiquity Press, Ltd.. - 2632-6655. ; 4:1, s. 801-816
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The village of Duved in northern Sweden faces rapid transformation related to the tourismindustry, including new housing and recreational facilities in the mountains. Existing placeswith inherent social values that play a key role in supporting local identity are threatenedas they are not sufficiently recognised or protected by the planning process. This studyfocuses on how significant places with social values, and the system of such places thatform a social infrastructure, may be identified and recognised through a multi-perspectiveapproach including a creative mapping process. Information from different stakeholdersabout places with social values is documented and analysed. The approach includesthree different perspectives on places affording social values: planning documents, theofficials’ perspective and the citizens’ perspective. The mapping method makes intangibleknowledge visible and reveals the multifunctionality of places, and the map constitutesthe medium for such a process. It can contribute to developing democratic planningprocesses that support the empowerment of the population and help professionals tointegrate knowledge about social value into plans, thus preserving fragile but essentialqualities through future development.
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| 10. |
- Lehner, Matthias, et al.
(författare)
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Living smaller: acceptance, effects and structural factors in the EU
- 2024
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Ingår i: Buildings and Cities. - 2632-6655. ; 5:1, s. 215-230
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article examines limits to per capita living space (i.e. living smaller and/or sharing living space) as a measure for achieving sufficiency in housing. It studies the acceptance, motivation and side-effects of voluntarily reducing living space in five European Union countries: Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Spain and Sweden. Insights are derived from an extensive collection of qualitative empirical material collected from citizen and stakeholder ‘thinking labs’ across the five case countries. Overall, the data reveal an initial reluctance among citizens to reduce living space voluntarily. They also point to some major structural barriers: the housing market and its regulatory framework, social inequality, or dominant societal norms regarding ‘the ideal home’. Enhanced community amenities can compensate for reduced private living space, though contingent upon a clear allocation of rights and responsibilities. Participants also reported positive effects to living smaller, including increased time for leisure activities and proximity to services. This was often coupled with urbanization, which may also be part of living smaller in the future.
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