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Contradictions of the Climate‐Friendly City: New Perspectives on Eco‐Gentrification and Housing Justice

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  • Jennifer L. Rice
  • Daniel Aldana Cohen
  • Joshua Long
  • Jason R. Jurjevich

Abstract

As local governments and corporations promote ‘climate friendliness’, and a low‐carbon lifestyle becomes increasingly desirable, more middle‐ and upper‐income urban residents are choosing to live near public transit, on bike‐ and pedestrian‐friendly streets, and in higher‐density mixed‐use areas. This rejection of classical forms of suburbanization has, in part, increased property values in neighborhoods offering these amenities, displacing lower‐income, often non‐white, residents. Increased prevalence of creative and technology workers appears to accelerate this trend. We argue that a significant and understudied socio‐environmental contradiction also occurs where the actual environmental outcomes of neighborhood transformation may not be what we expect. New research on greenhouse gas emissions shows that more affluent residents have much larger carbon footprints because of their consumption, even when reductions in transportation or building energy emissions are included. We describe an area in Seattle, Washington, the location of Amazon's headquarters, experiencing this contradiction and show a distinct convergence of city investments in low‐carbon infrastructure, significant rises in housing prices and decreases in lower‐income and non‐white residents. We conclude with a discussion of a range of issues that require more attention by scholars interested in housing justice and/or urban sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • Jennifer L. Rice & Daniel Aldana Cohen & Joshua Long & Jason R. Jurjevich, 2020. "Contradictions of the Climate‐Friendly City: New Perspectives on Eco‐Gentrification and Housing Justice," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 145-165, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:ijurrs:v:44:y:2020:i:1:p:145-165
    DOI: 10.1111/1468-2427.12740
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    Cited by:

    1. Rebecca Cavicchia & Roberta Cucca, 2020. "Densification and School Segregation: The Case of Oslo," Urban Planning, Cogitatio Press, vol. 5(3), pages 217-229.
    2. Hendrik Sander & Sören Weißermel, 2023. "Urban Heat Transition in Berlin: Corporate Strategies, Political Conflicts, and Just Solutions," Urban Planning, Cogitatio Press, vol. 8(1), pages 361-371.
    3. Andreas Ch. Hadjichambis & Demetra Paraskeva-Hadjichambi & Eleni Sinakou & Anastasia Adamou & Yiannis Georgiou, 2022. "Green Cities for Environmental Citizenship: A Systematic Literature Review of Empirical Research from 31 Green Cities of the World," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-30, December.
    4. Jakub Galuszka & Emilie Martin & Alphonse Nkurunziza & Judith Achieng’ Oginga & Jacqueline Senyagwa & Edmund Teko & Oliver Lah, 2021. "East Africa’s Policy and Stakeholder Integration of Informal Operators in Electric Mobility Transitions—Kigali, Nairobi, Kisumu and Dar es Salaam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-21, February.
    5. Jaroslav Mazanec & Veronika Harantová & Vladimíra Štefancová & Hana Brůhová Foltýnová, 2023. "Estimating Mode of Transport in Daily Mobility during the COVID-19 Pandemic Using a Multinomial Logistic Regression Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-15, March.
    6. Louise Manning, 2024. "Innovating in an Uncertain World: Understanding the Social, Technical and Systemic Barriers to Farmers Adopting New Technologies," Challenges, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-20, June.
    7. Lars Marcus & Johan Colding, 2023. "Placing Urban Renewal in the Context of the Resilience Adaptive Cycle," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-14, December.
    8. Ihnji Jon, 2024. "Reassembling the politics of “Green†urban redevelopment in East Garfield Park: A Polanyian approach," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 56(4), pages 1005-1023, June.
    9. Cavicchia, Rebecca, 2023. "Housing accessibility in densifying cities: Entangled housing and land use policy limitations and insights from Oslo," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    10. Rebecca Cavicchia & Roberta Cucca, 2020. "Densification and School Segregation: The Case of Oslo," Urban Planning, Cogitatio Press, vol. 5(3), pages 217-229.
    11. Enora Robin & Vanesa Castán Broto, 2021. "Towards A Postcolonial Perspective On Climate Urbanism," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(5), pages 869-878, September.
    12. Leon Wansleben & Nils Neumann, 2024. "Entrepreneurs beyond neoliberalism: Municipally owned corporations and climate change mitigation in German cities," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(5), pages 799-820, April.

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