IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v11y2018i1p86-d192873.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Sustainable Urban Liveability: A Practical Proposal Based on a Composite Indicator

Author

Listed:
  • Beatriz Valcárcel-Aguiar

    (Department of Applied Economics, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Santiago de Compostela, Av. Burgo das Nacións s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain)

  • Pilar Murias

    (Department of Applied Economics, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Santiago de Compostela, Av. Burgo das Nacións s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain)

  • David Rodríguez-González

    (Department of Economics, Business and Economy School, University of A Coruña, Elviña Campus, A Coruña 15071, Spain)

Abstract

This article presents a proposal for a composite index to assess the degree of sustainable urban liveability. It makes two key contributions to this field of study. The first is a proposal for the concept of sustainable urban liveability that includes the need to meet a minimum number of environmental conditions in terms of resource consumption and the deterioration of the environment. The second contribution is the use of a non-compensatory aggregation technique in order to construct the composite index. This kind of aggregation technique does not allow trade-offs between partial indicators. In the particular context of sustainable urban liveability, it prevents poor performance by the natural environment indicators from being compensated by positive results in the remaining indicators. The proposed composite index for sustainable urban liveability is applied to the case of 58 Spanish cities. The results reveal significant differences in the degree of sustainable urban liveability for this group of cities, but more importantly, they highlight the potential of this proposal for urban management.

Suggested Citation

  • Beatriz Valcárcel-Aguiar & Pilar Murias & David Rodríguez-González, 2018. "Sustainable Urban Liveability: A Practical Proposal Based on a Composite Indicator," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-18, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2018:i:1:p:86-:d:192873
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/1/86/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/1/86/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jaison R. Abel & Todd M. Gabe & Kevin Stolarick, 2014. "Skills across the Urban–Rural Hierarchy," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(4), pages 499-517, December.
    2. Annalisa Cicerchia, 1999. "Measures of Optimal Centrality: Indicators of City Effect and Urban Overloading," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 46(3), pages 273-299, March.
    3. Eduardo González & Ana Cárcaba & Juan Ventura, 2011. "The Importance of the Geographic Level of Analysis in the Assessment of the Quality of Life: The Case of Spain," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 102(2), pages 209-228, June.
    4. Dietz, Simon & Neumayer, Eric, 2007. "Weak and strong sustainability in the SEEA: Concepts and measurement," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(4), pages 617-626, March.
    5. Benjamin Saitluanga, 2014. "Spatial Pattern of Urban Livability in Himalayan Region: A Case of Aizawl City, India," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 117(2), pages 541-559, June.
    6. Franco Archibugi, 2001. "City Effect and Urban Overload as Program Indicators of the Regional Policy," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 54(2), pages 209-230, May.
    7. Diego Puga, 2010. "The Magnitude And Causes Of Agglomeration Economies," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(1), pages 203-219, February.
    8. Duranton, Gilles & Puga, Diego, 2004. "Micro-foundations of urban agglomeration economies," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: J. V. Henderson & J. F. Thisse (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 48, pages 2063-2117, Elsevier.
    9. Paulo Morais & Vera Miguéis & Ana Camanho, 2013. "Quality of Life Experienced by Human Capital: An Assessment of European Cities," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 110(1), pages 187-206, January.
    10. Eugenia Nissi & Annalina Sarra, 2018. "A Measure of Well-Being Across the Italian Urban Areas: An Integrated DEA-Entropy Approach," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 136(3), pages 1183-1209, April.
    11. Edward L. Glaeser & Bruce Sacerdote, 1999. "Why Is There More Crime in Cities?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(S6), pages 225-258, December.
    12. Catalina Turcu, 2013. "Re-thinking sustainability indicators: local perspectives of urban sustainability," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(5), pages 695-719, June.
    13. Nathanael D. Peach & Luke A. Petach, 2016. "Development and Quality of Life in Cities," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 30(1), pages 32-45, February.
    14. Lee Cronbach, 1951. "Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 16(3), pages 297-334, September.
    15. Christopher H. Wheeler, 2005. "Cities, Skills, and Inequality," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(3), pages 329-353, June.
    16. Luis Santos & Isabel Martins, 2007. "Monitoring Urban Quality of Life: The Porto Experience," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 80(2), pages 411-425, January.
    17. Peter Newton, 2012. "Liveable Sustainable? Socio-Technical Challenges for Twenty-First-Century Cities," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1), pages 81-102.
    18. Daisy Das, 2008. "Urban Quality of Life: A Case Study of Guwahati," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 88(2), pages 297-310, September.
    19. Jacqueline de Chazal, 2010. "A systems approach to livability and sustainability: defining terms and mapping relationships to link desires with ecological opportunities and constraints," Environmental Economics Research Hub Research Reports 1064, Environmental Economics Research Hub, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    20. Peter Howley & Mark Scott & Declan Redmond, 2009. "Sustainability versus liveability: an investigation of neighbourhood satisfaction," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(6), pages 847-864.
    21. Ekins, Paul & Simon, Sandrine & Deutsch, Lisa & Folke, Carl & De Groot, Rudolf, 2003. "A framework for the practical application of the concepts of critical natural capital and strong sustainability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(2-3), pages 165-185, March.
    22. Koichiro Mori & Toyonobu Fujii & Tsuguta Yamashita & Yutaka Mimura & Yuta Uchiyama & Kengo Hayashi, 2015. "Visualization of a City Sustainability Index (CSI): Towards Transdisciplinary Approaches Involving Multiple Stakeholders," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(9), pages 1-23, September.
    23. Kostas P. Bithas & M. Christofakis, 2006. "Environmentally sustainable cities. Critical review and operational conditions," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 14(3), pages 177-189.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Fernanda Caroline Caldatto & Sandro César Bortoluzzi & Edson Pinheiro de Lima & Sergio E. Gouvea da Costa, 2021. "Urban Sustainability Performance Measurement of a Small Brazilian City," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-16, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Beatriz Valcárcel-Aguiar & Pilar Murias, 2019. "Evaluation and Management of Urban Liveability: A Goal Programming Based Composite Indicator," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 142(2), pages 689-712, April.
    2. Beatriz Valcárcel-Aguiar & Pilar Murias & Alexandre Vecino-Aguirre, 2022. "Liveability Versus Sustainability in Spanish Cities: First Evidences Using Synthetic Indicators," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(4), pages 1935-1960, August.
    3. Ana Paula Barreira & Carla Amado & Sérgio Santos & Jorge Andraz & Maria Helena Guimarães, 2021. "Assessment and Determinants of the Quality of Life in Portuguese Cities," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 44(6), pages 647-683, November.
    4. Susana Iglesias-Antelo & Vicente López-López & Antonio Vázquez-Sanmartín, 2021. "Assessing the Influence of Strategic Resources on the Quality of Life in Spanish Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-19, November.
    5. Musa Pazhuhan & Saeed Zanganeh Shahraki & Niloofar Kaveerad & Sirio Cividino & Matteo Clemente & Luca Salvati, 2020. "Factors Underlying Life Quality in Urban Contexts: Evidence from an Industrial City (Arak, Iran)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-16, March.
    6. Qi Zhang & Esther Hiu-Kwan Yung & Edwin Hon-Wan Chan, 2021. "Meshing Sustainability with Satisfaction: An Investigation of Residents’ Perceptions in Three Different Neighbourhoods in Chengdu, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-32, November.
    7. Gilles Duranton & Diego Puga, 2020. "The Economics of Urban Density," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 34(3), pages 3-26, Summer.
    8. Juste Rajaonson & Georges A. Tanguay, 2019. "Urban Sustainability Indicators from a Regional Perspective: Lessons from the Montreal Metropolitan Area," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 141(3), pages 985-1005, February.
    9. Carl Gaigné & Jacques-François Thisse, 2013. "New Economic Geography and the City," Working Papers SMART 13-02, INRAE UMR SMART.
    10. E. A. Kolomak & A. O. Nezavitina, 2021. "Assessment of the Spatial Externalities of Major Cities on the Housing Market of Small and Medium-Sized Cities," Regional Research of Russia, Springer, vol. 11(3), pages 308-314, July.
    11. Federico Curci, 2015. "The taller the better? Agglomeration determinants and urban structure," ERSA conference papers ersa15p991, European Regional Science Association.
    12. Roberto Ganau & Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, 2022. "Does urban concentration matter for changes in country economic performance?," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 59(6), pages 1275-1299, May.
    13. Duranton, Gilles & Puga, Diego, 2014. "The Growth of Cities," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 5, pages 781-853, Elsevier.
    14. Xiwei Zhu & Ye Liu & Ming He & Deming Luo & Yiyun Wu, 2019. "Entrepreneurship and industrial clusters: evidence from China industrial census," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(3), pages 595-616, March.
    15. Silvio Franco & Barbara Pancino & Angelo Martella, 2021. "Mapping National Environmental Sustainability Distribution by Ecological Footprint: The Case of Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-14, August.
    16. William R. Kerr & Scott Duke Kominers, 2015. "Agglomerative Forces and Cluster Shapes," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 97(4), pages 877-899, October.
    17. Andini, Monica & de Blasio, Guido & Duranton, Gilles & Strange, William C., 2013. "Marshallian labour market pooling: Evidence from Italy," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(6), pages 1008-1022.
    18. Yoshitsugu Kanemoto, 2013. "Pitfalls in estimating “wider economic benefits” of transportation projects," GRIPS Discussion Papers 13-20, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.
    19. Rafael González-Val, 2015. "Cross-sectional growth in US cities from 1990 to 2000," Journal of Geographical Systems, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 83-106, January.
    20. Tanaka, Kiyoyasu & Hashiguchi, Yoshihiro, 2017. "Agglomeration economies in the formal and informal sectors : a Bayesian spatial approach," IDE Discussion Papers 666, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2018:i:1:p:86-:d:192873. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.