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Aligning Public Participation to Stakeholders’ Sustainability Literacy—A Case Study on Sustainable Urban Development in Phoenix, Arizona

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  • Matthew Cohen

    (School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, 800 South Cady Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
    Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Furman University, 3300 Poinsett Highway, Greenville, SC 29613, USA)

  • Arnim Wiek

    (School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, 800 South Cady Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA)

  • Braden Kay

    (School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, 800 South Cady Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA)

  • John Harlow

    (School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, 800 South Cady Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA)

Abstract

In public planning processes for sustainable urban development, planners and experts often face the challenge of engaging a public that is not familiar with sustainability principles or does not subscribe to sustainability values. Although there are calls to build the public’s sustainability literacy through social learning, such efforts require sufficient time and other resources that are not always available. Alternatively, public participation processes may be realigned with the sustainability literacy the participants possess, and their capacity can modestly be built during the engagement. Asking what tools might successfully align public participation with participants’ sustainability literacy, this article describes and evaluates a public participation process in Phoenix, Arizona, in which researchers, in collaboration with city planners, facilitated sustainability conversations as part of an urban development process. The tool employed for Visually Enhanced Sustainability Conversation (VESC) was specifically designed to better align public participation with stakeholders’ sustainability literacy. We tested and evaluated VESC through interviews with participants, city planners, and members of the research team, as well as an analysis of project reports. We found that the use of VESC successfully facilitated discussions on pertinent sustainability issues and embedded sustainability objectives into the project reports. We close with recommendations for strengthening tools like VESC for future public engagements.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew Cohen & Arnim Wiek & Braden Kay & John Harlow, 2015. "Aligning Public Participation to Stakeholders’ Sustainability Literacy—A Case Study on Sustainable Urban Development in Phoenix, Arizona," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(7), pages 1-20, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:7:y:2015:i:7:p:8709-8728:d:52062
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    4. Martos, A. & Pacheco-Torres, R. & Ordóñez, J. & Jadraque-Gago, E., 2016. "Towards successful environmental performance of sustainable cities: Intervening sectors. A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 479-495.
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