IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v8y2016i9p878-d77450.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Five Approaches to Social Sustainability and an Integrated Way Forward

Author

Listed:
  • Robert H. W. Boyer

    (Department of Geography & Earth Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, McEniry 324, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28223, USA)

  • Nicole D. Peterson

    (Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Barnard 217, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28223, USA)

  • Poonam Arora

    (Department of Management and Marketing, School of Business, Manhattan College, 518 De LaSalle, 4513 Manhattan College Parkway, Riverdale, NY 10471, USA)

  • Kevin Caldwell

    (Department of Geography & Earth Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, McEniry 324, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28223, USA)

Abstract

Sustainability is often conceived of as an attempt to balance competing economic, environmental and social priorities. Over the course of three decades of scholarship, however, the meaning and appropriate application of the ‘social pillar’ continues to inspire confusion. In this paper, we posit that the inherent challenge of understanding social sustainability is its many legitimate meanings plus a lack of interdisciplinary scholarship. We draw from literature in multiple disciplines to illustrate five different ways that the concept of social sustainability has been applied in scholarship and professional practice, and highlighting the importance of applications that acknowledge placed-based, process-oriented perspectives that understand social, economic, and environmental imperatives as integrated concepts. Ironically, this framing forecloses on social sustainability as an entity distinct from environmental and economic sustainability. We believe that organizing the conversation around these five applications can help advocates of sustainability use the concept of social sustainability in clear and powerful ways while avoiding applications that relegate the social dimensions of sustainability to an afterthought.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert H. W. Boyer & Nicole D. Peterson & Poonam Arora & Kevin Caldwell, 2016. "Five Approaches to Social Sustainability and an Integrated Way Forward," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(9), pages 1-18, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:9:p:878-:d:77450
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/9/878/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/9/878/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Patrick T Hurley & Peter A Walker, 2004. "Whose Vision? Conspiracy Theory and Land-Use Planning in Nevada County, California," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 36(9), pages 1529-1547, September.
    2. Maantay, J., 2001. "Zoning, equity, and public health," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 91(7), pages 1033-1041.
    3. Robinson, John, 2004. "Squaring the circle? Some thoughts on the idea of sustainable development," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 369-384, April.
    4. Ostrom,Elinor, 2015. "Governing the Commons," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107569782, January.
    5. Amekudzi, Adjo A. & Jotin Khisty, C. & Khayesi, Meleckidzedeck, 2009. "Using the sustainability footprint model to assess development impacts of transportation systems," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 43(4), pages 339-348, May.
    6. Adjo Amekudzi & Meleckidzedeck Khayesi & C. Jotin Khisty, 2015. "Sustainable development footprint: a framework for assessing sustainable development risks and opportunities in time and space," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 18(1/2), pages 9-40.
    7. Nicole Peterson, 2011. "Excluding to include: (Non)participation in Mexican natural resource management," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 28(1), pages 99-107, February.
    8. Tamsin Angus‐Leppan & Suzanne Benn & Louise Young, 2010. "A sensemaking approach to trade‐offs and synergies between human and ecological elements of corporate sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(4), pages 230-244, May.
    9. Julie Maldonado & Christine Shearer & Robin Bronen & Kristina Peterson & Heather Lazrus, 2013. "The impact of climate change on tribal communities in the US: displacement, relocation, and human rights," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 120(3), pages 601-614, October.
    10. Jennifer L. Rice & Brian J. Burke & Nik Heynen, 2015. "Knowing Climate Change, Embodying Climate Praxis: Experiential Knowledge in Southern Appalachia," Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 105(2), pages 253-262, March.
    11. Geels, Frank W., 2002. "Technological transitions as evolutionary reconfiguration processes: a multi-level perspective and a case-study," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(8-9), pages 1257-1274, December.
    12. Arora, Poonam & Peterson, Nicole D. & Krantz, David H. & Hardisty, David J. & Reddy, Kavita S., 2012. "To cooperate or not to cooperate: Using new methodologies and frameworks to understand how affiliation influences cooperation in the present and future," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 842-853.
    13. Beate Littig & Erich Griessler, 2005. "Social sustainability: a catchword between political pragmatism and social theory," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 8(1/2), pages 65-79.
    14. Arora, Poonam & Bert, Federico & Podesta, Guillermo & Krantz, David H., 2015. "Ownership effect in the wild: Influence of land ownership on agribusiness goals and decisions in the Argentine Pampas," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 162-170.
    15. Noah J. Goldstein & Robert B. Cialdini & Vladas Griskevicius, 2008. "A Room with a Viewpoint: Using Social Norms to Motivate Environmental Conservation in Hotels," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(3), pages 472-482, March.
    16. Giles Atkinson & Simon Dietz & Eric Neumayer & Matthew Agarwala (ed.), 2014. "Handbook of Sustainable Development," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 15312.
    17. John M Bryson, 2004. "What to do when Stakeholders matter," Public Management Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 21-53, March.
    18. Glen Bramley & Sinéad Power, 2009. "Urban Form and Social Sustainability: The Role of Density and Housing Type," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 36(1), pages 30-48, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. John Holmberg & Johan Larsson, 2018. "A Sustainability Lighthouse—Supporting Transition Leadership and Conversations on Desirable Futures," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-25, October.
    2. Anna Sundermann & Daniel Fischer, 2019. "How Does Sustainability Become Professionally Relevant? Exploring the Role of Sustainability Conceptions in First Year Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1, September.
    3. Nancy E. Landrum & Brian Ohsowski, 2018. "Identifying Worldviews on Corporate Sustainability: A Content Analysis of Corporate Sustainability Reports," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 128-151, January.
    4. Hayes, Samantha & Desha, Cheryl & Baumeister, Dayna, 2020. "Learning from nature – Biomimicry innovation to support infrastructure sustainability and resilience," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    5. Ki-Eun Kang & George C. Homsy, 2020. "Make Me a Better Offer: Developer Threats and Regional Competition for Land Development Projects," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 34(1), pages 21-30, February.
    6. Robert H W Boyer, 2015. "Grassroots Innovation for Urban Sustainability: Comparing the Diffusion Pathways of Three Ecovillage Projects," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 47(2), pages 320-337, February.
    7. Gemma Burford & Elona Hoover & Lee Stapleton & Marie K. Harder, 2016. "An Unexpected Means of Embedding Ethics in Organizations: Preliminary Findings from Values-Based Evaluations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(7), pages 1-22, June.
    8. Chisun Yoo & Sugie Lee, 2016. "Neighborhood Built Environments Affecting Social Capital and Social Sustainability in Seoul, Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(12), pages 1-22, December.
    9. Bhatt, Brijesh & Singh, Anoop, 2020. "Stakeholders’ role in distribution loss reduction technology adoption in the Indian electricity sector: An actor-oriented approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    10. Penny Mealy & Pete Barbrook-Johnson & Matthew C Ives & Sugandha Srivastav & Cameron Hepburn, 2023. "Sensitive intervention points: a strategic approach to climate action," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 39(4), pages 694-710.
    11. Arjan F. Kirkels & Jeroen Bleker & Henny A. Romijn, 2022. "Ready for the Road? A Socio-Technical Investigation of Fire Safety Improvement Options for Lithium-Ion Traction Batteries," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-22, May.
    12. Michael Jakob & William F. Lamb & Jan Christoph Steckel & Christian Flachsland & Ottmar Edenhofer, 2020. "Understanding different perspectives on economic growth and climate policy," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(6), November.
    13. Janina Priebe & Erland Mårald & Annika Nordin, 2021. "Narrow pasts and futures: how frames of sustainability transformation limit societal change," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(1), pages 76-84, March.
    14. Jimena Gonzalez-Ramirez & Poonam Arora & Guillermo Podesta, 2018. "Using Insights from Prospect Theory to Enhance Sustainable Decision Making by Agribusinesses in Argentina," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-15, August.
    15. Rakhshanda Khan, 2016. "How Frugal Innovation Promotes Social Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-29, October.
    16. Feriha Urfalı Doğu & Lerzan Aras, 2019. "Measuring Social Sustainability with the Developed MCSA Model: Güzelyurt Case," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-20, April.
    17. Gerald G. Singh, 2020. "Determining a path to a destination: pairing strategic frameworks with the Sustainable Development Goals to promote research and policy," Evolutionary and Institutional Economics Review, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 521-539, July.
    18. Landriani, Loris & Lepore, Luigi & D'Amore, Gabriella & Pozzoli, Stefano & Alvino, Federico, 2019. "Decorporatization of a municipal water utility: A case study from Italy," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 43-47.
    19. Bert George, 2017. "Does strategic planning ‘work’ in public organizations? Insights from Flemish municipalities," Public Money & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(7), pages 527-530, November.
    20. Kettle, Keri L. & Mantonakis, Antonia, 2024. "Look for the signature: Using personal signatures as extrinsic cues promotes identity-congruent behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:9:p:878-:d:77450. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.