Brownfield redevelopment is called upon to remedy damaged ecological, economic, and social conditions due to contamination from prior land use(s). It can be utilized as a means for revitalizing low-income neighborhoods and communities of color that have suffered from years of economic disinvestment and a polluted environment. Critics of brownfield redevelopment in low-income neighborhoods argue that this form of revitalization can backfire when property values and rental prices rise and existing residents are pushed out. The City of Oakland has demonstrated a form of inclusionary brownfield redevelopment that incorporates housing that is affordable to existing residents in the area and thus avoiding the form of exclusionary housing witnessed in other cases of brownfield redevelopment in central cities. This report builds on the hypothesis that inclusionary brownfield redevelopments in Oakland can serve as a model approach for other cities in preventing displacement of lower income, residents of color through gentrification. / text

While cities across the world are adopting urban sustainability plans and pursuing ‘sustainable development,’ the question of how these urban sustainability plans have made our cities indeed sustainable is a subject of debate. Some scholars are skeptical about whether urban sustainability planning challenges or reproduces existing power imbalance in the growth politics in cities. Given the current trend that the concept of sustainability has become embedded in our culture, little is known about the urban politics around urban sustainability plans and their effectiveness in promoting balanced sustainability in Asian cities. Using a case study of Seoul through in-depth interviews, this study examines the urban politics around the decision-making process and the implementation of sustainability plans in Seoul. As a rare case of recent rapid socio-economic transformations with the legacy of a developmental state, Korea serves as an example of how these transformations are likely to have for the urban politics of sustainability policies in other Asian countries. As conclusions, developmental states like Korea with a centralized governance system tend to use a “sustainability fix” that is heavily focused on ‘pro-growth’ development. With globalization, privatization, and democratization, the growth machine politics around urban sustainability planning in Korea is similar to that observed in the Western context. However, in Seoul, the growth machine is heavily influenced by the federal government and Mayoral leadership. This is because of the embedded legacy of the developmental state. In addition, with increased democratization and a growing role of civic groups in urban politics, we see a move towards “just sustainability” in urban sustainability planning in Korea. / Geography

Klimatförändringar har en betydande inverkan på grundläggande mänskliga rättigheter. Marginaliserade grupper anses särskilt sårbara för klimatförändringarnas återverkan, där bland annat personer med funktionsnedsättningar. Denna fallstudie undersöker därför hur funktionshinderperspektivet integreras eller konkurrerar med klimatanpassning i kommunal översiktsplanering i Sveriges storstadsregioner Stockholm, Göteborg och Malmö. Målet är att bedöma hur inkluderande svenska kommuners klimatanpassning är.Klimatförändringarnas påverkan på personer med funktionsnedsättningar och deras rättigheter utforskas, och en teoretisk ram byggs baserad på FN:s konvention om rättigheter för personer med funktionsnedsättning, det sociala synsättet på funktionsnedsättning och intersektionalitet. Studien bygger på en innehållsanalys av översiktsplaner och en mindre mängd enkäter. En tematisk analys av resultaten visar skillnader i hur ett funktionshinderperspektiv integreras i kommunala planer och upplevs av personer med funktionsnedsättningar. Trots liknande förutsättningar, målsättningar och klimatrelaterade förhållanden varierar kommunernas förmåga att integrera funktionshinderperspektiv. Bristande kommunikation, skillnader i förståelse och tillämpning av tillgänglighetsåtgärder och dess upplevda funktion framträder som stora utmaningar för kommunal klimatanpassning. Den bristande kommunikationen från kommuner förvärrar problemen och understryker behovet av förbättrade åtgärder och tydligare dialoger mellan kommuner och medborgare.Vidare forskning rekommenderas för att bredda förståelsen av kunskapsluckan och i en svensk kontext ska en mer omfattande förståelse inför de utmaningar som personer med funktionsnedsättningar står inför i skuggan av klimatförändringar / Climate change is disrupting vital human rights, with marginalized groups bearing the brunt. For the marginalized group of people with disabilities, the challenges are even more pronounced. Therefore, this case study investigates the integration or potential competition between a disability perspective and climate adaptation efforts in municipal planning, focusing on Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö in Sweden. The aim being to assess the inclusivity of climate adaptation initiatives in Swedish municipalities. The study establishes a theoretical framework encompassing the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the social model of disability, and intersectionality. It identifies crucial aspects within climate adaptation and disability rights, emphasizing the importance of an ecological and social sustainability perspective, adaptive versus mitigative adaptation strategies, and the political underpinnings of effective adaptation measures. By conducting a content analysis over municipal comprehensive plans and an additional smallscale survey, the outcome reveals disparities in integrating accessibility measures within municipal plans, hindering the participation and well-being of individuals with disabilities. While municipalities strive for incorporation of accessibility measures, the efforts fall short, leading to exclusionary outcomes. Insufficient communication and engagement from municipal authorities exacerbate these short-comings, highlighting the need for enhanced measures and clearer communication channels between municipalities and citizens to achieve equitable and inclusive climate adaptation. Despite similar geographic and climate-related conditions, municipalities exhibit variations in their ability to integrate disability perspectives effectively - the study exposes both progress and shortcomings in climate adaptation efforts across the municipalities, emphasizing the underrepresentation of disability perspectives. This resulted in a pin-pointed necessity for municipalities to intensify efforts to comprehensively integrate disability perspectives into climate adaptation strategies to ensure inclusivity and equity in Swedish municipalities. Further research is recommended to broaden the understanding of a disability perspective in climate change adaptation and to further clarify if adaptation initiatives are inclusive and just.

xvi, 298 p. : col. map. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Cities in the United States are increasingly challenged with sharpening inequalities, social exclusion and the effects of a swelling environmental footprint. In response, city officials, political interest groups and residents have seized the framework of urban sustainability to address these mounting social and environmental problems. However, the push for environmental and social sustainability often directly contradicts the push by influential urban business coalitions for cities to be more economically competitive with other locales. I explore the compatibility of urban sustainability and economic development through a case study of Eugene, Oregon's Sustainable Business Initiative, led by Mayor Kitty Piercy. In this Initiative, the interaction between the urban sustainability and economic development discourses calls into question current entrepreneurial strategies and opens the door to exploring the implications of integrating sustainability and social justice concepts with urban economic development policy. Labor-community-environmental coalitions, with a broad vision for sustainability and regional equity, present an alternative to traditional business coalitions' influence on economic development policy and provide a strategy for economic development based in wealth redistribution and environmental health. / Committee in charge: Gregory McLauchlan, Chairperson, Sociology; Yvonne Braun, Member, Sociology; Linda Fuller, Member, Womens and Gender Studies; Michael Bussel, Outside Member, History