On Sustainability

On Sustainability

Sustainability essay,
UCL, the Bartlett school of architecture,
MSc Urban Design, UD 03.13,
Urban Evolution - the Thames Gateway
Fabian Neuhaus 2006-03-24

Introduction - what is sustainability
Official description and terminology Sustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs [World Commission on Environment and Development, Brundtland Report, 1987].
The actual model for sustainability is called the three-dimensional model. It is bases on the image of three circles for the target dimension of environment, economy and society, to witch are added the time and north-south dimensions [are - Amt für Raumentwicklung, Defi nition Nachhaltigkeit, 2004].

Point of view - how to see it
Why isn‘t it clear to do so?
If sustainability is talking about the way everyone and everything is performing in a respective way to the surrounding, there is no point of not acting it in such a way. It sounds to me; as such behaviour is a natural act of being. It is not understandable to me why there are other behaviours in such a large number that we have to fear the next century.
It is all about someone else will do it....
If the single person doesn‘t bothers about, at least a company should do. If the fi rm‘s not doing it at least the government should. If one country is not taking care about it, at least the whole world should do it...
But maybe it is the other way round. If the whole world is not doing it, at least the single state should take care about. If the single state doesn‘t do it, a single company or a city should do it. If the city doesn‘t take care, the inhabitants should do it...
Every action matters, there is no question about scale or size. Even more, actions have to be connected through all scales. It needs to be a consistent line, an overall policy.
For me sustainability is the lived part of understanding system theory. That is, in a short saying: every object and action is connected to many others. Everyone creates visible and even more invisible impacts by acting. Sustainability is about acting in aware of these connections and not overdose impacts.
The Atom is the past. The symbol of science for the next century is the dynamical Net. The Net is the archetype displayed to represent all circuits, all intelligence, all interdependence, all things economic and social and ecological, all communications, all democracy, all groups, all large systems [Kevin Kelly, Out of Control in Richard Rogers, edited by Phillip Gumuchdjian, Cities for a small planet, page 146].
It seems to be a question of education and knowledge. To understand things in such a way, of course there is education needed. I don‘t think it is an accident that sustainability appears together with a systemic understanding of the world in the early seventies of the last century. The discovery of the system description enables to become aware of action impacts and raises the key questions of sustainability.
The first satellite picture from outer space in 1959 gave these new thoughts an image. The whole world could look at it self and capture the fi niteness of our living room. And it is maybe still the most powerful image to support all activities around sustainability.
Sustainability is also about images > Spaceship Earth [in Buckminster Fuller, Critical Path, New York, St. Martin‘s Press, 1981]

Question of general understanding of everyone‘s environment
Generally, it is thought to be learned as a child from the family, how we shall act in our environment. The terminology of respect, faith and dosage is said to be taught in this tiny element of the society. But maybe this way of seeing it denies the importance and complexity of the task.
And maybe it needs more educational knowledge to understand and especially discover the systemically connection in everyday life to act accordingly. It is a fact that a large number of the world‘s population haven‘t the chance to access an education system like we know it. How can all these people be integrated into a large discussion and acting program around sustainability if they are not able to capture the range of it?
Sustainability is also about education.

Money - [S] = luxury? 3rd world? China? America?
Does it become a question of money and wealth? Is it an accident that sustainability becomes such a popular trend in rich countries of Western Europe like Switzerland and Germany? Is it more than just chic to move into a single-family house, where anyone says it‘s an eco-home?
What about millions of people who dream of having a car in china? Maybe they understand the impact but who can tell them not to enjoy what we in Europe or America enjoy for years and now are fed up with, because there‘s a new hype? Or the really poor people in Africa, why shouldn‘t they destroy their nature to built some energy ineffi cient holiday resorts for rich tourists?
In these cases it seems to be a decision between desires, desire of goods and articles the western people showed their power with for many decades, and sanity of the natural call for acting within the system.
In this way of looking at it, there seems to be a gap between systemically action and economy, money and wealth versus sanity and naturalness? But is there no other choice? Is there really only on or the other, is it only black OR white?
Sustainability is also about combining and integration.

Problems - how and why
Who does it - who doesn‘t
In professional circles in central Europe it starts to be accepted that the question of sustainability has to be addressed and integrated. There are a large number of campaigns on different scales in every media. Sustainability is a big thing.
Lots of people are talking about it, but it seems that even more don‘t understand a word.
Of course it is high time that the London boroughs run campaigns on waste and recycling. But do people on the street get the message? Do they get the image of millions of used nappies get buried under their potential single-family home site? Do they know the alternatives, can they even imagine some?
As discussed previous, a big part of it is highly connected to education and the understanding and care about every ones own environment. But also there must be given a chance to do so. Every action matters and every element of the society acts as an example for others - without scale.
Sustainability is also about information.

Definitions - measurement - certificates
As a relatively young clime in different - or all? - aspects of life, it is the question of how to compare sustainable actions and activities. There are lots of discussions about sustainability and how to do it, but what are the guidelines? How can sustainability be measured?
On an architectural scale of single buildings arisen in the last few years a number of different standards. ECO, Natural, Low Emission, Low Energy, Zero Energy, Sustainable Life cycle... each of them with a howl lot of studies, facts and numbers to proof anything. A big business, and a big confusion.
It seems that by now things are getting sorted out and there are a number of certifi cates going to be installed at least on national levels to clean up and set the same base for discussions. At lest on architectural Levels.
How about larger scale projects?
In Switzerland, the Federal Offi ce of spatial planning developed a tool called MONET to kind of measure or monitor projects on sustainability. This thing needs over 100 indicators to give you some output.
Sustainability is also about complexity.

Urban design - integration or living it?
Important points
Sustainability as said in the introductions, is constituted in offi cial terms out of environment, social, and economy. These tree factors have to be in a balance to create sustain living.

Strategies of integration
Sustainable development requires fi tting in the wider environment, reusing existing systems and features and securing priorities to slow modes of transport, ecological values, human well being and safety. This should be achieved by integrating sectorial contributions, involving the public and other administrative levels and building commitment of all involved [in The European Council of Town Planners, Try it this Way - Sustainable Development at the Local Level, page 31].
Doesn‘t this sound like a description of planning? Why should a project be different in any general points from this description? Is there a point of planning something unhealthy or unsafe for people? Why would someone plan anything without fi tting it into the wider environment or not reuse existing systems? This is one major point of confusion. On a logical base there seems to be no point of talking about these obvious points of general planning, but there is!
Waste
The idea of the endless cycle of design and production promises from the wasteful industrial systems of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The new design model provides a continuous assembly/disassembly line that cycles the product and its constituent matter - rather than recycling it - in a never-ending loop of improvement [in Bruce Mau and Jennifer Leonard, Massive Change, page 181].
Energy
The worldwide grid: The future of our planet depends on our redesigning the current power system, which relies on large-scale, centralized entities. We need to produce energy locally and distribute it globally [in Bruce Mau and Jennifer Leonard, Massive Change, page 83].
Concepts
Whether there is a general defi nition or a standard, concepts of integration rather than exclusion and concepts of connection rather than disconnection seem to appear more sustainable.
Monocultural, monotony concepts out of the early 20th century appear in these days point of view as a complete failure. Today the key seems to be diversion and mixture - only a trend, who knows?
Another key could be the infl uence on the surrounding by stating an example. The point is not to be totally and best sustainable. It is more important to be known and seen as sustainable in combination with a successful project. This could have impacts on others and is way more likely to be copied.
Sustainability is also about setting trends.

Conclusion
New point of view? - What changed?
It is not about one fi eld of action where sustainability haste to take place in such a manner. First, sustainability has to take place through all scales up to a global level in all fi elds. If you believe in being able to extinguish traffi c jams by installing round a bouts you wont succeed with on roundabout per city.
Every action is embedded in a system of elements, relations and impacts; every action has to be taken in awareness of this fact.
Every action matters through all the scales. But all partners need to be on the same level of understanding.
Sustainability is also about equal rights.
If you want to build solutions for the future and have people working with you, every citizen has to understand the system very well. You have to have a commitment with simplicity. Every child should know the design of his or her own city. They should design the city even, because if you can design the city you can understand the city. If you understand the city, you will respect the city [Jaime Lerner on public transport in Bruce Mau and Jennifer Leonard, Massive Change, page 59].



Bibliography

Richard Rogers, edited by Philip Gumuchdjian, Cities for a small planet, London, Faber and Faber Limited, 1997

The European Council of Town Planners, Try it this Way - Sustainable Development at the Local Level, South Tyrol, Department of regional and Townplanning, 2002

Jack W. Lapatra, Applying the system approach to urban development, Dowden, Hutchinson and Ross, 1973

Bruce Mau with Jennifer Leonard and the Institute whitout Boundaries, Massive Change, London, Phaidon Press Limited, 2004

United Nations Sustainable Development, Agenda 21, Rio de Janerio Brazile, June 1992

Geoff Mulgan, connexity - how to live in a connected world, Harward Business School Press, 1998

Buckminster Fuller, Critical Path, New York, St. Martin’s Press, 1981

Sustainable Development ARE, http://www.are.admin.ch/are/en/nachhaltig/defi nition/index.html, [accessed 2006-03-03]

UN Department od Economic ans Social Affairs - Division for Sustainable Development, http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/, [accessed 2006-03-03]