European Environment Agency Towards - - Sustainable Development for Local Authorities Approaches, Experiences and Sources Cover design: Malini Mehra, IMSA Amsterdam, The Netherlands Note The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the European Commission or the European Environment Agency concerning the legal status of any country or territory, and the boundaries shown on maps do not imply official endorsement or acceptance. Printed on recycled and chlorine-free bleached paper Printed in XXXXXXXX © European Environment Agency 1997 European Environment Agency Kongens Nytorv 6 DK - 1050 Copenhagen K Denmark Tel: +45 33 36 71 00 Fax: +45 33 36 71 99 E-mail: [email protected] Homepage: http://www.eea.eu.int Towards Sustainable Development for Local Authorities Approaches, Experiences and Sources Prepared for the European Environment Agency by Malini Mehra IMSA Amsterdam Van Eeghenstraat 77 1071 EX Amsterdam The Netherlands February 1997 4 Towards Sustainable Development for Local Authorities 5 Foreword Towards Sustainable Development for Local Authorities — Approaches, Experiences and Sources According to the regulation, the European Environment Agency (EEA) has got the mandate ‘to provide the Community and the Member States with objective, reliable and comparable information at the European level’. Among the different goals, the EEA shall provide information for environmental policy development and implementation and ensure broad dissemination and accessibility. Important principles in this context are: pooling, structuring and networking of existing information and know how. Local authorities and organizations are important clients for EEA products and services. Local authorities have a key role to play in the transition to more sustainable ways of living. This report introduces the history, interpretations and development of the sustainability debate and describes the efforts of local authorities operationalising the sustainable development concept. The report addresses the reader who is trying to locate her or his community’s efforts in the wider European and global perspective. Because of the dynamic development within this field, the report can only be a snapshot of current developments, focusing on the EU countries. Hopefully, an updated version of the book will cover more examples and initiatives in Southern European Countries, Central and Eastern Europe. Also, the report can be seen as a contribution from the EEA to the Sustainable Cities and Towns project co- ordinated and supported by the European Commission. This project is a follow-up of the Commission’s Green Paper on Urban Environment. Participants of the project are EU Member States, a range of international organizations listed in the information source directory and the Commission directorates. Important components in the project are the Campaign, the Good Practice Database and the Sustainable Cities Policy Report. Other highlights in the field of urban sustainability are the European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, Aalborg 1994 (adoption of the Aalborg Charter), and the Second European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, Lisbon, 1996 (adoption of the Lisbon Action Plan). The development and finalization of this publication has involved many contributors other than the author involved. The report has been reviewed by the National Focal Points and the Scientific Committee of the EEA, for which the EEA is grateful. The EEA hopes that this publication will prove useful to its readers in increasing their access to approaches, experiences and information sources within the area of sustainable development. Mr Domingo Jiménez-Beltrán Executive Director European Environment Agency 6 Acknowledgements A number of people have helped with this publication at various stages. They include Roger Levett who provided a rigorous review of the draft and many insights and suggestions. Wouter van Dieren, David Gee, and Eric den Hamer who offered valuable commentary. Jan Juffermans who was a mine of information and always generous with his advice. Ingvar Andersson at the European Environment Agency who provided encouragement at all the right moments. Several colleagues, past and present, at IMSA helped to get the project on the rails and keep it on track. They include Henk Vissé, David Rosenberg and Sarah Blau. In particular, grateful thanks go to Eva Klok for her assistance with the layout and word processing; to Joke Jongejan for help in researching and gathering material for Part II; and to Tammo Oegema for providing reliable feedback and support. Finally many thanks go to all those who have provided information for Part II and other segments of the report. Malini Mehra Amsterdam, February 1997 Towards Sustainable Development for Local Authorities 7 Contents Foreword .................................................................................................................................................... 5 Acknowledgements..................................................................................................................................... 6 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 10 Purpose of the report ......................................................................................................................10 Structure and organization of material.........................................................................................11 PART I Local Authorities Moving Towards Sustainable Development .....13 1 Making sense of sustainable development.................................................... 15 Taking the long view: sustainability in evolutionary and ecological perspective .....................................................................................................................16 The evolution of sustainability itself.............................................................................................20 Conflicts and controversies............................................................................................................21 2 Towards a positive policy context for sustainability?.................................. 29 The international context................................................................................................................29 The European context .....................................................................................................................37 3 Responding to a new paradigm: the challenge for local authorities........ 45 Sustainable cities and Sustainable communities .........................................................................45 Local authorities: the changing governance context...................................................................48 Local authorities in Europe: a variegated landscape ..................................................................57 Responding to the challenges ........................................................................................................62 4 Practising sustainability: challenges and innovations................................. 67 Internal challenges and the need for a new professionalism.....................................................67 Democratising local government: achieving the ‘impossible’ ...................................................68 Ecological footprinting: reconnecting the effects of environmental degradation with the causes................................................................71 Urban agriculture: not only food for thought, but also action ..................................................74 Putting it all together... ...................................................................................................................76 Conclusion .................................................................................................77 Annex 1: Comparing competing paradigms ............................................................ 78 8 PART II Selected Resources for Local Authorities.............................................85 User’s Notes .................................................................................................................................... 86 5 Selected Literature............................................................................................... 87 Category 1 – Good Practice Guides.............................................................................................. 87 Category 2 – Sustainable Urban Development ........................................................................... 88 Category 3 – Sustainable Community Development................................................................. 89 Category 4 – Strategies for Sustainable Development ............................................................... 89 Category 5 – Local Agenda 21 and related guides ..................................................................... 90 Category 6 – Tools .......................................................................................................................... 91 Category 7 – References................................................................................................................. 92 6 Selected Internet Sites ........................................................................................ 93 7 Resource Directory.............................................................................................