An investigation into planning for urban resilience through niche interventions

© 2016 Dr. Andreanne DoyonThis thesis investigated how planning for urban resilience is informed by niche interventions. This was done by tracking the trajectory of live/work as a niche intervention in San Francisco, Oakland, and Vancouver. The trajectories were used to contribute to understandings of urban resilience by providing insights into each city’s governance structures, approaches to planning, and key stakeholders, and identifying challenges and success factors. Resilience planning was more successful with collaborative and experimental planning, compared to rigid, top-down political approach

Equitable Implementation of Green Infrastructure: An Analysis of the City of Vancouver

As climate change continues to pose a threat to human health, cities have turned to nature-based solutions, such as green infrastructure (GI), to lessen the impacts of climate change felt by communities. However, many practitioners are not incorporating equity considerations in GI siting decisions; thus, leaving marginalized and racialized communities to disproportionately bear the impacts of urban environmental issues. In the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the GI Branch is investigating ways in which they can apply an equity lens to their work. To aid in their endeavour, this study examines existing challenges to equitably implementing GI, as well as areas for improvement, through a literature review, document and planning tool analysis, and key informant interviews. Drawing from the findings, this paper develops a set of equity criteria, which centre three dimensions of social equity: distributional, recognitional, and procedural equity, to help practitioners operationalize equity in GI project evaluations

Localizing a just transition: a case study of St. George, Alaska

This paper explores the St. George Economic Development Strategy and strategy development process through a just transitions lens. St. George is a remote island located in Alaska’s Bering Sea, and is home to a small community of Unangan people facing a declining population, infrastructure deficit, and high unemployment. Through a qualitative content analysis and informal interviews, we analyzed how the strategy engaged with four forms of justice (distributive, procedural, recognition, and epistemic) and considered how the development process might have facilitated justice responses. The aim of this research is to share St. George’s efforts to build a more sustainable and just future for their community, as well as highlight key considerations for other communities and researchers engaging in this type of work. The success of St. George’s Economic Development Strategy is due to strong community leaders, a community focused approach to engagement, and respectful consideration and inclusion of the community’s values and beliefs

Can Outer Suburbs Become 20 Minute Cities?

The State of Australian Cities (SOAC) national conferences have been held biennially since 2003 to support interdisciplinary policy-related urban research. This paper was presented at SOAC 6, held in Sydney from 26-29 November 2013. SOAC 6was the largest conference to date, with over 180 papers published in collected proceedings. All papers presented at the SOAC 2013 have been subject to a double blind refereeing process and have been reviewed by at least two referees. In particular, the review process assessed each paper in terms of its policy relevance and the contribution to the conceptual or empirical understanding of Australian cities