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Here we ask ourselves not where objects come from, but investigate our relationship with what lies beneath the material. Within the Two Point O project, in the Växjö Crisis Edition, the practice of Care Biopics evolves. These individualised interventions bring us face to face with multiple storylines and definitions of an object valued during times of crisis. How does the proposed exploration of Care Biopics, community values and material symbolism facilitate the shift from mindless overconsumption to mindful materialism?Through several aspects of co-creating digital material, definitions and common values, Care Biopics weave a practice of democratic and accessible design. A practice of inclusitivty, caring with and social sustainability. A practice of designing not for, but with the people.

The global demographic context of contemporary society is characterized by an increasing percentage of elderly people. In fact, currently in Portugal 22% of its total population is over 65 years of age with an average retirement age of approximately 64 years of age. As a result, it is considered one of the countries in the world with the highest proportion of elderly people, which are consequently labelled as a socially vulnerable group. This prevalent situation presents a current social problem described by the lack of inclusion and sense of meaning among the elders and retired in civil society, shaping the embedded negative attitudes and stereotypes attached to these societal groups as invalid and dependent. In this way, the continuous growth of the elderly population requires the introduction of social organizations, such as the Portuguese social organization The Grandmas Came to Work, centered in the elderly and retiree’s inclusion in society and on their well-being. The main focus of this social organization is to promote ageing as a continuation of development and learning through creative methods and activities, as well as to fill the gap between generations by offering the elderly and retired a place where they can learn from each other, discuss and meet. Hence, this study aims to understand the social and economic sustainability of this particular organization to support the inclusion and well-being of the elderly. This will be done by analyzing the viability of using artistic methods and activities in the context of elderly and retiree's social inclusion. This issue is relevant in the context of Portugal given its predominance of an elderly population and the lack of this group's social inclusion. In fact, it is predicted that by 2050 Portugal will be the country in the European Union with the highest percentage of elderly people (32%) and lowest percentage of working population. This complex issue was studied by using qualitative methods for the data collection, namely through the conduction of semi-structured interviews done to one of the organization’s founders and to its participants. This data provided an updated version of the situation of the elderly and retired population living in Portugal, especially of their possible social inclusion by participating in this specific type of social organizations. The results confirmed the role of such organizations for contributing to the social inclusion of the elderly and retired and for their increased sense of meaning, affecting positively both theirs and society’s perception of the continuous value and contribution of this group. Nevertheless, as what happens in many social and non-social organizations, some limitations were found in the project’s management and respective suggestions were made to face those limitations.

Årligen genomförs tusentals miljökonsekvensbeskrivningar (MKB) i Sverige i samband med fysisk planering. Social hållbarhet utgör en grundpelare för hållbar samhällsutveckling. I mån om att uppnå det inom fysisk planering krävs metoder för att mäta, utvärdera och förutspå sociala aspekter av utformandet. Miljökonsekvensbeskrivningar besitter en särställning genom att vara den enda metoden som utifrån detta är reglerad enligt lag för att beskriva sociala konsekvenser. Tidigare forskning har riktat kritik mot miljökonsekvensbeskrivningar i form av att de snävt inkluderar sociala aspekter. Studiens syfte var att undersöka i vilken utsträckning sociala aspekter tas hänsyn till i strategiska MKB: er för detaljplaner. För att uppfylla studiens syfte har en kvalitativ innehållsanalys med deduktiv ansatts tillämpats. Ett granskningsschema användes för att analysera fem utvalda MKB-dokument i relation till tidigare forskning och teoretiskt ramverk. Det teoretiska ramverket grundas i politisk ekologi, miljörättvisa, demokrati och deltagande. Resultat bekräftar kritiken som tidigare forskning riktar mot MKB: er. Människor visades återkommande presenteras som en homogen grupp och identifierades inte utifrån olika sociala förutsättningar. Hänsynstagande till sårbara grupper varierade även inom respektive MKB. Studien visar också på att granskade MKB: er inte utvecklar i vilken utsträckning de tagit vara på det demokratiska verktyget samråd. Avslutningsvis visades det vara möjligt att dra slutsatsen om att MKB: er besitter en stor potential till att främja ett socialt hållbart samhälle. En möjlighet som medverkare i dess utformning bättre bör utnyttja. / Thousands of environmental impact assessment (EIA) are implemented in Sweden every year. Social sustainability is one of three stakeholders of a sustainable society. Considering physical planning in the society required methods such as measure, evaluate and predict social aspects has been proved to be important to achieve social sustainability. EIA are today the only method that are regulated by Swedish laws with the aim to include social aspects. Previous research has criticized EIA for its narrow definition and implementation of social aspects. The aim of this study is to examine how social aspects are included in EIA:         detailed development plans, to achieve this a qualitative study has been used. Five EIA documents have been analyzed against an own designed examination. The social aspects which has been found in the documents has also been analyzed through the study’s theoretical framework which includes theories as political ecology, environmental justice, participation and democracy. Main findings of this study proved to be consistent with previous research criticisms to EIA. People are observed to be presented as a homogeneous group in EIA documents and differences in social conditions and capacity are not being considered. The main findings also include that consideration about vulnerable groups could differ between the EIA documents. Another notable finding from this study is that EIA don’t show how they achieve to implement public consultation. Finally, it is possible to conclude that the EIA have a great potential to contribute to a socially sustainable society - An opportunity that EIA developers should take better use of.

En viktig del av ett socialt hållbart samhälle är att individer känner sig trygga i den offentliga miljön. Den upplevda nivån av trygghet påverkar människors hälsa och beteende och därför är det viktigt att ta hänsyn till de aspekter som har stor inverkan på tryggheten i ett område. Parker och grönområden har stor inverkan på livskvaliteten hos en stads befolkning samtidigt som de är viktiga ur ett hållbart perspektiv. Syftet med denna studie är att få en uppfattning om hur tryggheten i ett grönområde påverkas av miljöns utformning och användning samt om personer upplever trygghet i ett grönområde olika beroende på kön och andra demografiska faktorer. Detta har gjorts med hjälp av en fallstudie över Boulognerskogen och Stadsträdgården i centrala Gävle där 12 platser valdes ut. Studien har även undersökt hur känslan av trygghet påverkas av platsens geografiska placering, kringliggande omgivning samt individers rörelsemönster. Resultaten av studien är baserat på både kvalitativa och kvantitativa data. Dessa data skapades genom att en webbaserad enkätstudie sändes ut till allmänheten, ett flertal observationer utfördes i grönområdet samt två djupintervjuer, en med Gävles Stadsarkitekt och en med en Landskapsarkitekt på Gävle kommun. En visualisering skapades utifrån enkätsvaren i ett geografiskt informationssystem (GIS) för att kunna se hur trygghetsnivån varierar på olika platser i grönområdet. Detta har även möjliggjort att det gått att utläsa hur platsers nivå av trygghet kan påverka varandra utifrån deras placering inom grönområdet. Det framgår av resultaten att det kön individen identifierar sig som och den åldersgrupp som individen tillhör påverkar var i grönområdet individen upplever trygghet och otrygghet. Studien har visat att Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) kan implementeras hos Gävle kommun i trygghetsskapande arbete för att förbättra nivån av trygghet i Boulognerskogen och Stadsträdgården. En ökad förståelse har nåtts genom studien för hur viktig planeringen av grönområden är och att det finns aspekter som behövs tas i beaktning i projekteringen av grönområden. Studien har även lett till insikten att mycket belysning inte behöver skapa ett tryggt område men att mängden växtlighet samt skötseln av denna i ett område är en viktig faktor för trygghet. / An important part of a socially sustainable society is that individuals feel safe in the public environment. The perceived level of safety affects people’s health and behavior and therefore it is important to take the aspects into account that have a major impact on the feeling of safety in an area. Parks and green areas have a large impact on the quality of life of a city’s population whilst at the same time being important from a sustainable perspective. The purpose of this study is to get a deeper understanding of how the perceived safety in green areas is affected by the design and use of the environment and understand whether people experience the feeling of safety in green areas differently depending on their gender and other demographic factors. This was done with the help of a case study in the parks Boulognerskogen and Stadsträdgården in central Gävle where 12 sites were selected. The study has also investigated how the feeling of safety is affected by the areas’ geographical location, surrounding environment and the movement pattern of people. The results of the study are based on data that are both qualitative and quantitative. These data were created by sending out a web-based survey to the public, a number of observations made in the green area and two in-depth interviews, one with Gävle’s Urban Architect and one with a Landscape Architect from Gävle municipality. A visualization was created based on the survey responses in a geographic information system (GIS) to see how the level of perceived safety varies at different locations in the green area. This has also made it possible to study how the level of perceived safety in different locations can affect each other based on their placement within the green area. The results indicate that the gender the individual identifies as and that their age affect where in the green area the individual experiences the feeling of safety or the feeling of being unsafe. The study has shown that Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) can be implemented at Gävle municipality in safety enhancing work to improve the level of perceived safety in Boulognerskogen and Stadsträdgården. An increased understanding has been reached through the study of the importance of planning green areas and that there are aspects that needs to be taken into account when designing green areas. The study has led to the realization that lots of lighting does not need to create an area that is perceived as safe but that the amount of vegetation and its management in an area is an important factor for the feeling of safety.

Buildings account for 39 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions, therefore the way buildings are constructed and utilized plays an important role in the transition to a sustainable future. Environmental Certification Systems (ECS) functions as a catalysator for sustainable solutions within the building industry and is seen as a hygiene factor for property owners today. The market offers numerous environmental certifications for buildings to choose from, and Swedish property owners are frequently users of them. However, most of the environmental certification systems does not cover the social aspects of sustainability that directly include human health and wellbeing in the building. This has led to the creation of the sustainability certification WELL Building Standard – a global certification system for buildings that exclusively addresses the users in the building, in terms of health and wellbeing. There are currently 298 WELL-certified projects around the world, and in Sweden there are six property companies that have registered different project for the certification. Due to the Swedish property owners’ relatively modest efforts regarding the social sustainability work, this paper explores what the drivers is for these six companies into working with a WELL-certification. By exploring that, this study aims to contribute to the understanding on what can drive the willingness of corporations to invest in sustainability certifications in general, and in what ways a WELL-certification can fill a potential gap in the Swedish property market. The findings reveal that a WELL-certification has a unique selling point due to its human-centred approach. It can be a beneficial tool, both for property companies, who may attract new clients, as well as for the tenants that are renting their space, in terms of increasing their own employer brand and corporate reputation. According to Herzberg’s two-factor theory, this human centred approach can be used as motivation factor for the property owners, rather than a hygiene factor. The findings also reveal that there is a need in society for addressing health issues, due to the increasing numbers of sick leave in Sweden the past years. Furthermore, the study reveals that there have been a “competence gap” in the built environment for addressing this kind of issues and that a WELL-certification is therefore helpful in addressing areas of the built environment that the property owners never have thought of before.

This thesis discusses how children's perspectives are implemented in the municipality's physical planning in Sweden in relation to the statutory UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The thesis seeks to answer how the planners express their views on the participation, as well as their views on the child and childhood. The study is based on three research questions. The aim is examined in relation to comprehensive planning and use the Norwegian context as a comparison since the country has progressed further in the implementation of the convention. The theoretical framework consists of a research overview regarding social sustainability, and the concepts of child and childhood. An historical review of children’s geography is also conducted. In addition, previous research regarding children’s participation in planning, as well as participation models lays ground for the theoretical framework. The small-scale case study of three municipalities is carried out by six qualitative interviews with physical and strategical planners, as well as professionals with experience in citizen dialogue. In addition, the empirical analysis includes a small document study of the municipal frameworks for citizen participation. Key findings are that children's perspectives are lacking in municipal planning processes, especially in relation to the comprehensive planning. In the three cases in this study, the efforts to incorporate children’s perspective into the planning process seems to be largely guided by the planners' own knowledge and interests. The implementation work with the Convention on the Right of the Child varies somewhat between the municipalities, where one of them stood out and had come further than the other two in connection with the physical planning. The planners view of the child shaped the opportunities for the children to participate in the planning process. The lack of formal guidelines is also described as a reason for the children's lack of participation. An ambivalent picture of children is found among planners and decision makers. These split images create a difficulty in creating a uniform picture of children's participation in the municipalities, as well as finding suitable methods for participation. However, many of the interviewees expressed a strong interest in involving children in planning to a greater extent, and to gain access to more knowledge in the subject.

The concept of sustainability includes three dimensions: ecological-, economical- and social sustainability. Of these dimensions, social sustainability is the hardest to measure and define. Consequently, the social dimension is often ignored in urban development. Lack of social sustainability over time increases the risk of antisocial behaviour and crime. Socially ”failed” communities often show increased segregation and crime. These symptoms can today be traced in many Swedish places.  There are several methods for assessing the social sustainability of built environment. Two of these methods are Jan Gehl's twelve quality criteria and Social Life's building blocks. This study intends to combine Gehl's twelve quality criteria with Social Life's building blocks and then adapt the results to Swedish conditions.  The aim of this study is to highlight important factors for social sustainability through the development and implementation of an easy-to-use assessment method and investigate how these factors affect social sustainability. The assessment method strives for an increased understanding of social sustainability. The objective of the study is to develop an assessment matrix for social sustainability adapted to the Swedish context through previous theories and research. The assessment matrix shall be an easy-to-use tool for an on-site assessment of factors that affect social sustainability. The developed assessment matrix will then be used to highlight potential for improvement regarding social sustainability in central Kronoparken, Karlstad.  The study was conducted in three parts. The first part focuses on creating new assessment categories based on Jan Gehl's twelve quality criteria and Social Life's building blocks. Part 1 results in eight new assessment categories: Architecture & aesthetics, Places to meet, Social Infrastructure, Accessibility, Traffic, Security, Senses & experience and Development. The results in part 1 are then adapted to Swedish conditions in part 2. Part 2 results in a new assessment matrix for social sustainability uniquely adapted to Swedish conditions. The matrix contains a total of 40 questions evenly distributed over the assessment categories developed in Part 1. The adaptation of the assessment matrix to Swedish conditions makes it suitable for use in Swedish site assessments.  In part 3 the new assessment matrix for social sustainability is used to evaluate central Kronoparken. The results of the evaluation show that central Kronoparken is a place with great potential for improvement in terms of social sustainability. The categories with the largest potential for improvement are Architecture & aesthetics, Security and Senses & experience. Strengths of the site include the categories of accessibility and traffic. / I begreppet hållbarhet ryms tre dimensioner: ekologisk-, ekonomisk- och social hållbarhet. Av dessa dimensioner är social hållbarhet den som är svårast att mäta och definiera. Detta har fått följden att den sociala dimensionen ofta bortses ifrån vid stadsförändrande åtgärder vilket i sin tur kan få negativa följdeffekter. Bristande social hållbarhet över tid ökar risken för antisocialt beteende och brottslighet. Områden som har ”fallerat” socialt visar ofta upp ökad segregation och brottslighet. Dessa symtom går idag att spåra på många orter i Sverige. För att bedöma den sociala hållbarheten i byggd miljö finns flera metoder. Två av dessa är Jan Gehls tolv kvalitetskriterier och Social Lifes byggstenar. Det här examensarbetet ämnar kombinera Gehls tolv kvalitetskriterier med Social Lifes byggstenar för att sedan anpassa resultatet efter svenska förhållanden. Arbetets syfte är att genom framtagande och implementerande av en lättanvänd bedömningsmatris undersöka och belysa viktiga faktorer för social hållbarhet samt undersöka hur dessa faktorer påverkar den sociala hållbarheten. Bedömningsmatrisen eftersträvar en ökad förståelse för den sociala hållbarheten. Målet för arbetet är att genom tidigare teorier och forskning framta en bedömningsmatris för social hållbarhet anpassad efter svensk kontext. Bedömningsmatrisen skall vara ett lätthanterligt verktyg för en platsbedömning av faktorer som påverkar den sociala hållbarheten. Den framtagna bedömningsmatrisen skall sedan användas för att belysa förbättringspotential ur en social synvinkel för Kronoparkens centrum i Karlstad. Examensarbetet utförs i tre delar. Den första delen av arbetet fokuserar på att skapa nya bedömningskategorier baserat på Jan Gehls kvalitetskriterier och Social Lifes byggstenar. Del 1 resulterar i åtta nya bedömningskategorier: Arkitektur & estetik, Mötesplatser, Social infrastruktur, Tillgänglighet, Trafik, Trygghet, Upplevelse och Utveckling. I examensarbetets andra del anpassas resultatet i del 1 efter svenska förhållanden. Del 2 resulterar i en ny bedömningsmatris för social hållbarhet unikt anpassad efter svenska förhållanden. Matrisen innehåller totalt 40 frågor jämnt fördelat över de i del 1 framtagna bedömningskategorierna. Bedömningsmatrisens anpassning efter svenska förhållanden gör den lämplig att använda för platsbedömningar i Sverige. Den nya bedömningsmatrisen används sedan i del 3 för platsbedömning ur social aspekt av Kronoparkens centrum. Resultatet visar att Kronoparkens centrum är en plats med stor förbättringspotential i fråga om den sociala hållbarheten. Kategorierna med störst förbättringspotential är arkitektur & estetik, trygghet och upplevelse. Styrkor hos platsen inkluderar kategorierna tillgänglighet och trafik.

Little is known about how sustainable entrepreneurs balance sustainability aspects with growth. The aim of this study is to investigate how growth and sustainability are balanced, and what role customers play in this balance. To answer this question we used a case study design and interviewed 8 executives representing 5 sustainable new ventures based in Sweden. The theory of the three pillars of sustainability was used to categorise and probe the data. Our research draws on two types of sustainability companies (sustainability-at-its-core and product-at-its-core) that balance sustainability and growth in a different way. Customers play an essential role in the balance, as they both impact growth and the sustainability level. Our research shows that within balancing growth and sustainability, sustainability can be seen as a company trait rather than a choice as sustainability is a part of the core of the new ventures’ business and will therefore always have an important position, even if growth is limited. It is recommended to explore the distinction in sustainable company type more in depth or other stakeholders’ influence towards new ventures in balancing growth and sustainability in the future.

This paper examines how social- and environmental sustainability is advertised on Instagram and how it in turn affects consumer-based brand equity. Firstly, a latent content analysis was conducted on Adidas Instagram account, @adidas, to gain insights on how they use sustainability in their advertising through their Instagram posts. The findings revealed how Adidas explicitly advertise sustainability, both social- and environmental sustainability on their Instagram account. However, the analysis displayed a higher focus on social issues compared to initiatives to facilitate environmental sustainability. Secondly, Adidas Instagram was analyzed with the use of insights from interviews, to capture how its sustainability efforts affect consumers and thereby brand equity. The findings demonstrate the importance of taking the consumer perspective into account to positively affect the dimensions included within brand equity through social media, and to not miss out on the favorable outcomes of sustainability advertising. Accordingly, the research offers concrete knowledge on how sustainability can be advertised on social media by fashion brands, and its effect on brand equity. An area that has highly been neglected among previous researchers. The study contributes to valuable knowledge on how brands, in a generally unsustainable industry, could demonstrate their sustainability efforts in advertising to foster sustainable consumption among consumers into a more sustainable future.