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...
Published in: | Sustainability |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
MDPI AG
2020
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11122/11375 https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 |
id |
ftunivalaska:oai:scholarworks.alaska.edu:11122/11375 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivalaska:oai:scholarworks.alaska.edu:11122/11375 2023-05-15T14:36:56+02:00 Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? Berman, Matthew Orttung, Robert W. 2020-05-03 http://hdl.handle.net/11122/11375 https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 en eng MDPI AG http://hdl.handle.net/11122/11375 2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su12093708 su12093708 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ CC-BY Sustainability 12 9 3708 Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment Geography Planning and Development Management Monitoring Policy and Law Article 2020 ftunivalaska https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 2023-02-23T21:37:40Z 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. National Science Foundation of Sri Lanka Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic University of Alaska: ScholarWorks@UA Arctic Sustainability 12 9 3708 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Alaska: ScholarWorks@UA |
op_collection_id |
ftunivalaska |
language |
English |
topic |
Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment Geography Planning and Development Management Monitoring Policy and Law |
spellingShingle |
Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment Geography Planning and Development Management Monitoring Policy and Law Berman, Matthew Orttung, Robert W. Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities? |
topic_facet |
Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment Geography Planning and Development Management Monitoring Policy and Law |
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. National Science Foundation of Sri Lanka |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Berman, Matthew Orttung, Robert W. |
author_facet |
Berman, Matthew Orttung, Robert W. |
author_sort |
Berman, Matthew |
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 |
http://hdl.handle.net/11122/11375 https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_source |
Sustainability 12 9 3708 |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/11122/11375 2071-1050 doi:10.3390/su12093708 su12093708 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093708 |
container_title |
Sustainability |
container_volume |
12 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
3708 |
_version_ |
1766309464765366272 |