Equity in Sustainability
Author: Angela Park
Date: 2014
Abstract: Equity’s visibility has increased as a core component of sustainability in recent years. Leading cities and regions are now making equity central to their sustainability efforts—in name and in practice. Sustainability is commonly defined as the Three Es (environment, economy, and equity), the triplebottom line (planet, people, and profit), and as a next-generation term for environmentalism. While The Three Es and the triple-bottom line have equity and a focus on the well-being, health, and livelihood of people embedded within them, sustainability is often framed with environmentalism as the primary focus, true integration of equity is emerging slowly. This work has continued and deepened over the last thirty years. Historically, equity took a back seat in sustainability framing, discussion, and implementation. Despite its expansive definition, sustainability initiatives, policies, networks, and the movement’s leadership have been dominated by environmentalists who have institutionalized, often unconsciously, a narrower, greenfocused orientation. Consequently environmental justice activists and some leaders who bring a broader lens (like those in the fields of economic development and planning, for example) perceive that those who frame sustainability in purely environmental terms are either ignorant of or dismissive to equity considerations. This legacy has impacted the perception of local government sustainability departments. “I find few sustainability offices doing very much on equity,” said one major city’s planning director. “Equity is the forgotten E in the three Es of sustainability.” Equity became a prominent issue among USDN members in 2013, and continues as a focus area of the network. Currently, eighteen USDN members participate in bimonthly calls of the USDN Equity and Access User Group—initially led by members in Newark, Albany, Cincinnati, and Denver—to share information and learn together about topics that include defining equity in sustainability, community outreach and engagement, metrics, and incorporating equity concerns into adaptation, transportation, and land use planning. USDN’s fall 2013 annual meeting featured an equity workshop and plenary, and in January 2014, USDN sponsored a peer-to-peer exchange focused on equity tools for twenty staff from nine cities and counties.
Tags: Economy, Environment, Equity, Sustainability, Urban planning,
Link to Resource: https://www.usdn.org/uploads/cms/documents/usdn_equity_scan_sept_2014_final.pdf
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Date: 2014
Abstract: Equity’s visibility has increased as a core component of sustainability in recent years. Leading cities and regions are now making equity central to their sustainability efforts—in name and in practice. Sustainability is commonly defined as the Three Es (environment, economy, and equity), the triplebottom line (planet, people, and profit), and as a next-generation term for environmentalism. While The Three Es and the triple-bottom line have equity and a focus on the well-being, health, and livelihood of people embedded within them, sustainability is often framed with environmentalism as the primary focus, true integration of equity is emerging slowly. This work has continued and deepened over the last thirty years. Historically, equity took a back seat in sustainability framing, discussion, and implementation. Despite its expansive definition, sustainability initiatives, policies, networks, and the movement’s leadership have been dominated by environmentalists who have institutionalized, often unconsciously, a narrower, greenfocused orientation. Consequently environmental justice activists and some leaders who bring a broader lens (like those in the fields of economic development and planning, for example) perceive that those who frame sustainability in purely environmental terms are either ignorant of or dismissive to equity considerations. This legacy has impacted the perception of local government sustainability departments. “I find few sustainability offices doing very much on equity,” said one major city’s planning director. “Equity is the forgotten E in the three Es of sustainability.” Equity became a prominent issue among USDN members in 2013, and continues as a focus area of the network. Currently, eighteen USDN members participate in bimonthly calls of the USDN Equity and Access User Group—initially led by members in Newark, Albany, Cincinnati, and Denver—to share information and learn together about topics that include defining equity in sustainability, community outreach and engagement, metrics, and incorporating equity concerns into adaptation, transportation, and land use planning. USDN’s fall 2013 annual meeting featured an equity workshop and plenary, and in January 2014, USDN sponsored a peer-to-peer exchange focused on equity tools for twenty staff from nine cities and counties.
Tags: Economy, Environment, Equity, Sustainability, Urban planning,
Link to Resource: https://www.usdn.org/uploads/cms/documents/usdn_equity_scan_sept_2014_final.pdf
DOWNLOAD