Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities?
The International Organization for Standardization recently responded to a growing global interest in cities by developing an index for measuring urban sustainability (ISO 37120). We address how well this standard applies to Arctic cities, and potential modifications that might improve its performan...
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 https://doaj.org/article/0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 2023-05-15T14:34:52+02:00 Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? Matthew Berman Robert W. Orttung 2020-05-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 https://doaj.org/article/0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 EN eng MDPI AG https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/9/3708 https://doaj.org/toc/2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su12093708 2071-1050 https://doaj.org/article/0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 Sustainability, Vol 12, Iss 3708, p 3708 (2020) Arctic ISO 37120 indicators urban Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 2022-12-31T16:05:59Z The International Organization for Standardization recently responded to a growing global interest in cities by developing an index for measuring urban sustainability (ISO 37120). We address how well this standard applies to Arctic cities, and potential modifications that might improve its performance. After briefly discussing the goals of sustainability indicators, we examine the extent to which Arctic cities’ remote location, cold and changing climate, and thin, largely resource-based economies may create different sustainability challenges. We then critically examine the content of ISO 37120 and the context in which it was created. We place the index within a broader discussion of urban sustainability indicators and examine the extent to which it really addresses sustainability. We then analyze how well the ISO 37120 accounts for the characteristic features of Arctic cities that produce unique sustainability challenges. Our findings show that only half of ISO 37120′s 128 indicators actually measure future-oriented concerns. We suggest that, while the ISO 37120 may be a useful starting point in quantifying Arctic urban sustainability, the index should only be used as a foundation for a more in-depth analysis. To better represent Arctic cities, the ISO 37120 would need to include indicators that situate cities within their regional contexts, addressing both remoteness and the underlying basis of the Arctic city economy. The index should also measure the role of Indigenous populations, and chart the extent to which cities are working to increase levels of sustainability. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Sustainability 12 9 3708 |
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Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Arctic ISO 37120 indicators urban Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
spellingShingle |
Arctic ISO 37120 indicators urban Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Matthew Berman Robert W. Orttung Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
topic_facet |
Arctic ISO 37120 indicators urban Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
description |
The International Organization for Standardization recently responded to a growing global interest in cities by developing an index for measuring urban sustainability (ISO 37120). We address how well this standard applies to Arctic cities, and potential modifications that might improve its performance. After briefly discussing the goals of sustainability indicators, we examine the extent to which Arctic cities’ remote location, cold and changing climate, and thin, largely resource-based economies may create different sustainability challenges. We then critically examine the content of ISO 37120 and the context in which it was created. We place the index within a broader discussion of urban sustainability indicators and examine the extent to which it really addresses sustainability. We then analyze how well the ISO 37120 accounts for the characteristic features of Arctic cities that produce unique sustainability challenges. Our findings show that only half of ISO 37120′s 128 indicators actually measure future-oriented concerns. We suggest that, while the ISO 37120 may be a useful starting point in quantifying Arctic urban sustainability, the index should only be used as a foundation for a more in-depth analysis. To better represent Arctic cities, the ISO 37120 would need to include indicators that situate cities within their regional contexts, addressing both remoteness and the underlying basis of the Arctic city economy. The index should also measure the role of Indigenous populations, and chart the extent to which cities are working to increase levels of sustainability. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Matthew Berman Robert W. Orttung |
author_facet |
Matthew Berman Robert W. Orttung |
author_sort |
Matthew Berman |
title |
Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
title_short |
Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
title_full |
Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
title_fullStr |
Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
title_full_unstemmed |
Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
title_sort |
measuring progress toward urban sustainability: do global measures work for arctic cities? |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 https://doaj.org/article/0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_source |
Sustainability, Vol 12, Iss 3708, p 3708 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/9/3708 https://doaj.org/toc/2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su12093708 2071-1050 https://doaj.org/article/0e9975beaf674573925c1b2b3aa80511 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 |
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Sustainability |
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12 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
3708 |
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