Sweden has been praised for its achievements, and promoted as a role model, in sustainable urban development. This thesis, comprising five separate articles and a cover essay, is a critical study of the Swedish urban sustainable imaginary. The first article examines how this imaginary is produced. Using an actor-network theory approach, I view the Swedish pavilion at the World Expo in Shanghai in 2010 as a node in a wider network, arguing that the notion of decoupling GDP growth from CO2 emissions constitutes a central storyline. The second and third papers study the circulation of this imaginary in practice, specifically examining two cases of exporting Swedish sustainable urban planning to Chinese eco-city projects. Few of these plans, I note, were materialised in built form; rather, they contributed to the circulation of a repetitive model of sustainable urbanism, reinforcing a paradoxical idea of urban sustainability as “green islands of privilege”. The storyline of decoupling – and the circulating business of sustainable urbanism into which it feeds – is based on a deficient territorial view of space. In this research, I advocate a political ecology perspective and relational view of space, wherein there are no such things as sustainable or unsustainable cities. Rather, planning should aim for more just socio-environmental relations within and across urban borders. The fourth and fifth papers address the wider question of how planning can foster more socio-environmentally just forms of urban sustainability. Here, I emphasise a consumption perspective on greenhouse gas emissions as an important counter-narrative and analyse two Swedish municipalities’ efforts to lessen citizens’ consumption through policy and planning practice.   This research highlights the need to continuously develop and contest imaginaries and planning practices of sustainability, of who is perceived as “sustainable” and what a socio-environmentally just perspective might mean in practice for policy makers and planners alike. / <p>QC 20170120</p>

The concentration of populations in urban areas is unprecedented, and cities will continue to grow. This increases pressure on cities to provide services for their growing populations, such as waste management. The Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG11, focuses on urbanisation: Make cities &amp; human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Target 11.6 proposes paying special attention to waste management. Waste generation is increasing due to changed patterns of consumption, and the planet is now facing a global waste crisis. Cities worldwide have to transition into waste smart entities by minimising and reducing waste for the sake of becoming sustainable, safe cities for their inhabitants.   For South Africa, the challenge is not only linked to urbanisation and population growth. The country is named the most inequitable country in the world and faces a multifaceted challenge as they also battle resilient structures of the past.   The purpose of this study is to identify obstacles and opportunities for transitioning to sustainable urban waste management in South Africa. To do so a methodology inspired by ethnography has been applied in order to uncover the everyday practices of people, as well as analysing the current plan for waste management. All data was interpreted through the lens of previous research on South African policy-making, and the theory of structuration was used to enable discussion on obstacles and opportunities for urban sustainability and waste management.   Conclusively, the biggest obstacle for sustainable waste management is the inequality and exclusion from opportunities. This lack of opportunity means that citizens are first and foremost preoccupied with their day-to-day needs, such as job- and food security, leaving waste management further down the list. To get residents to care about waste livelihoods must be improved, and a path to inclusion and opportunity has to be found. The dire unequal terms of life for many citizens must be addressed in order to achieve the urban sustainability it strives for.

O trabalho consiste em entender o papel de uma empresa de saneamento, a Sabesp, Companhia de Saneamento Básico de São Paulo, na sustentabilidade da Região Metropolitana de São Paulo, RMSP, através de seus projetos estruturantes: Projeto Tietê, Projeto Vida Nova, Córrego Limpo e o PURA. Para tanto, foram analisados os dados oficiais dos programas desenvolvidos pela companhia paulista juntamente com depoimentos dos profissionais envolvidos com os projetos, com especialista do Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas - IPT e do responsável pelo Programa Vida Nova da PMSP. A partir de então, pôde-se concluir que, apesar do bom encaminhamento dos programas e de suas ações serem multidisciplinares, é necessário que, para que se tenha um resultado efetivo, todas as ações sejam pensadas e desenvolvidas de forma ampla e sistemática, com participação intensa e colaborativa de toda a sociedade bem como de agentes públicos e privados e em longo prazo. / The work consists in understanding the role of a sanitation company, Sabesp, the Basic Sanitation Company of São Paulo, at the sustainability of São Paulo´s Metropolitan Region (RMSP), by means of its structuring projects: Projeto Tietê, Projeto Vida Nova, Córrego Limpo and PURA. In order to do that, the official data of the developed programs by the São Paulo´s company have been analyzed, together with the statements of the professionals involved with the projects, with the expert of the Instituto de Pesquisa Tecnológica - IPT and the responsible for the Programa Vida Nova of São Paulo´s City Hall. From then on, it was possible to conclude that, despite the good management of the programs and that their actions are multitasks, it is necessary that, in order to achieve an effective result, all actions are reasoned and developed in a broad and systematic way, with an intense and collaborative participation of all society as well as the public and private players and in the long term.

A partir de questionamentos associados à proliferação de condomínios horizontais e loteamentos fechados em Vinhedo (gated communities nos E.U.A), procurou-se evidenciar através de indicadores pautados no conceito de sustentabilidade urbana, o que se tem de realmente sustentável quando da introdução destes empreendimentos na paisagem. Para isso foram consideradas duas dimensões: a sustentabilidade social urbana e a sustentabilidade ambiental urbana, cada qual com dois indicadores; mobilidade e acessibilidade a áreas verdes ou/lazer públicas intramuros, cobertura vegetal arbórea e impermeabilização dos solos, sendo estes últimos analisados entre 1962 e 2012, tanto intra como extramuros. Esta proposta visou demonstrar que o modelo ou padrão de habitação urbana baseada em loteamentos fechados e condomínios horizontais amplia em Vinhedo a possibilidade de alcance da sustentabilidade ambiental urbana, ao mesmo tempo em que reduz a possibilidade de alcance da sustentabilidade social urbana, uma vez que sua lógica de implantação desconsidera importantes funções sociais a serem desempenhadas pela cidade, dessa forma, o alcance da sustentabilidade urbana considerada como um todo se torna parcial. / From questions associated with the proliferation of horizontal condominiums and closed subdivisions in Vinhedo (gated communities), it was tried to highlight by indicators guided the concept of urban sustainability, which has really sustainable when the introduction of these enterprises in the landscape. For this we considered two dimensions: urban social sustainability and urban environmental sustainability, each with two indicators; mobility and accessibility to green areas or / public recreational intramural, arboreal coverage and soil sealing, the latter being analyzed between 1962 and 2012, both intra and extramural. This proposal aimed to demonstrate that the model or pattern of urban housing based on closed subdivisions and horizontal condominiums in Vinhedo expands the possibility of reach of urban environmental sustainability, while reducing the possibility of reaching the urban social sustainability, once its logic implementation ignores important social functions to be performed by the city, thereby achieving urban sustainability considered as a whole becomes partial.

Um dos principais desafios atuais da humanidade é a sustentabilidade planetária, isto é, os aspectos ambiental, econômico e social da Terra. Estimativas das Nações Unidas apontam que, em 2050, 66% da população mundial será urbana, o que significa que as cidades têm um papel de destaque no desafio de busca da sustentabilidade. Nesse contexto, o objetivo deste trabalho é indicar os critérios, os procedimentos e as práticas necessárias a serem utilizadas para uma cidade se tornar mais sustentável. A literatura mostra a grande amplitude do tema, das definições dos termos e as dificuldades e discussões a respeito do assunto. A partir da revisão da literatura, os Compromissos de Aalborg um guia de dez objetivos a serem seguidos para o alcance de mais sustentabilidade urbana passaram a servir como um norteador de temáticas relevantes relacionadas a cidades mais sustentáveis. Além da revisão bibliográfica, os indicadores de duas iniciativas da sociedade civil, o Programa Cidades Sustentáveis, no Brasil, e a European Sustainable Cities, foram contemplados na discussão. Em seguida, realizou-se um cotejamento entre as abordagens da literatura científica, os indicadores das iniciativas supracitadas e os Compromissos de Aalborg. O resultado foi a identificação de que os Compromissos de Aalborg têm uma correspondência científica e, portanto, possibilitam o estabelecimento de critérios para cidades mais sustentáveis, tornando-se, assim, uma referência para a discussão desse tema / One of the major current challenges of humanity is planetary sustainability in the environmental, economic and social sense. The United Nations estimates that by 2050, 66% of the worlds population will be urban, which means that cities will have a prominent role in reaching global sustainability. It is in this context that this work seeks to identify the key criteria, procedures and practices for cities to become more sustainable. Current literature demonstrates great breadth in the subject. It was found in the literature review that the Aalborg Commitments, a ten commitment guide to urban sustainability, is a guiding source for the achievement of sustainable cities. Indicators from two civil society initiatives, the \"Sustainable Cities Program\" in Brazil, and the \"European Sustainable Cities were also included in the discussion. Next, a comparison was made between the approaches of the scientific literature, the indicators of the two initiatives indicated above, and the Aalborg Commitments. It was found that the Aalborg Commitments have a scientific basis, and thus, allow for the establishment of criteria for more sustainable cities. In this way, the Aalborg Commitments become a reference for the discussion of urban sustainability

Esta pesquisa propõe a aplicação de indicadores de sustentabilidade urbana em um conjunto habitacional, na cidade de Manaus/AM, a partir de princípios de desenvolvimento sustentável investigados em experiências bem sucedidas na Europa e no Brasil. Os exemplos pesquisados, denominados bairros sustentáveis, são iniciativas urbanísticas comprometidas com os indicadores de desenvolvimento sustentável que propõem um novo modelo de ocupação urbana. Este modelo prioriza o uso racional de recursos naturais, a utilização de materiais ecológicos, de fontes renováveis de energia, o controle de resíduos, a reutilização da água das chuvas, incentivos para o \'não uso de carros\' promovendo o pedestre, o ciclista e o transporte público com impactos na melhoria na qualidade de vida de seus moradores. Para tanto, a metodologia pauta-se em um corpus teórico das idéias que tem sido discutidas sobre a sustentabilidade em proposições que se apresentam com distintas adjetivações como: \"Desenvolvimento Sustentável\", \"Ecodesenvolvimento\", \"Sociedades Sustentáveis\", \"Comunidades Sustentáveis\", termos estes, abordados nos Acordos/Encontros Internacionais, configurando-se como um panorama histórico da questão ambiental e a cidade. Segue-se com as definições de indicadores, índices e princípios de sustentabilidade urbana e aescolha de cinco experiências apoiadas pelos critérios de representatividade do diferencial entre elas, pelo pioneirismo, pelo reconhecimento nos meios especializados e pelo potencial de difusão. Considerou-se também importante, a inclusão de experiências internacionais que se destacassem por seu grau de inovação, estruturação e consolidação. Esta soma de saberes específicos contribuiu para a formulação de um quadro-síntese dos indicadores de sustentabilidade urbana aplicáveis ao conjunto habitacional \'Parque Residencial Manaus\'. / This research proposes the application of urban sustainability indicators in a public housing in the city of Manaus, Amazonas, since the principles of sustainable development investigated in successful experiences in Europe and Brazil. The examples studied, called sustainable neighborhoods, are urban initiatives are committed to the sustainable development indicators which offer a new model of urban settlement. This model emphasizes the rational use of natural resources, the use of green materials, renewable sources of energy, waste control, reuse of rainwater, incentives for the \'non-use of cars\' promoting the pedestrian, the cyclist and public transportation to improve the quality of life for its residents. For this, the methodology is guided in a corpus of theoretical ideas that have been discussed on the sustainability of propositions that are presented with different adjectives such as \"Sustainable Development\", \"Ecodevelopment\", \"Sustainable Societies\", \"Sustainable Communities\", terms discussed in the Agreements / International Meetings, configuring it as a historical overview of environmental issues and the city. Then, it presents the definitions of indicators, indices and principles of urban sustainability and the choice of five experiments that were chosen using the representativeness criteria of the differential between them, the pioneering, recognition in specialist circles and the diffusion potential. It was also important to include international experiences that stood out for their musical innovation, restructuring and consolidation. This sum of specific knowledge contributed to formulate of a summary table of urban sustainability indicators that were applied to the public housing \'Parque Residencial Manaus\'.

Orientador: Margarete Cristiane de Costa Trindade Amorim / Banca: João Lima Sant'Anna Neto / Banca: João Osvaldo Rodrigues Nunes / Banca: Karin Schwabe Meneguetti / Banca: Heloisa Soares de Moura Costa / Resumo: A sustentabilidade é assimilada a diversas e distintas perspectivas no espaço urbano, porém, somente como um artifício discursivo. E a premissa disso é o adjetivo sustentável apoiar-se na teoria sistêmica, a qual o torna um sistema mecanicista, coerente e generalizado, na prática. Logo, a presente tese procurou entender primeiro o processo do desenvolvimento sustentável, por via da complexidade de suas contextualizações temporal e espacial, global e local, as quais o caracterizaram como o novo modo de regulação do capitalismo neoliberal, para sua acumulação flexível. Inserida nesse contexto, a cidade de Maringá é, também, produzida por projetos desenvolvimentistas que visam torná-la mais competitiva nos mercados multiescalares, para a atração de capitais. Como proposta, por um lado, o projeto teórico de sustentabilidade de Maringá parte dos princípios do ajuste do padrão de produção-consumo e da legitimação dos ritmos sociais na apropriação dos recursos naturais, segundo os fundamentos da concepção de sustentável e da produção maringaense do espaço urbano. E, por outro lado, o projeto prático parte da avaliação... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Sustainability is treated as diverse and distinct perspectives in urban space, but only as a discursive device. And its premise is the adjective sustainable rely on systems theory, which makes it a mechanistic, consistent and widespread system in practice. So, this thesis sought first understand the process of sustainable development, through the complexity of their spatial and temporal contextualization, global and local, which have characterized him as the new neoliberal mode of regulation, to their flexible accumulation. Inserted in this context, the city of Maringá, in Paraná State (Brazil), is also produced by development projects that aim to make it more competitive in the multiscale markets, to attract capitals. As proposed, on the one hand, the theoretical project sustainability of Maringá comes from the principles of adjusting the standard of production-consumption and legitimation of social rhythms in the appropriation of natural resources, according to the fundamentals of sustainable conception and maringaense production of urban space. And on the other hand, the practical project comes from the... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Esta pesquisa propõe a aplicação de indicadores de sustentabilidade urbana em um conjunto habitacional, na cidade de Manaus/AM, a partir de princípios de desenvolvimento sustentável investigados em experiências bem sucedidas na Europa e no Brasil. Os exemplos pesquisados, denominados bairros sustentáveis, são iniciativas urbanísticas comprometidas com os indicadores de desenvolvimento sustentável que propõem um novo modelo de ocupação urbana. Este modelo prioriza o uso racional de recursos naturais, a utilização de materiais ecológicos, de fontes renováveis de energia, o controle de resíduos, a reutilização da água das chuvas, incentivos para o \'não uso de carros\' promovendo o pedestre, o ciclista e o transporte público com impactos na melhoria na qualidade de vida de seus moradores. Para tanto, a metodologia pauta-se em um corpus teórico das idéias que tem sido discutidas sobre a sustentabilidade em proposições que se apresentam com distintas adjetivações como: \"Desenvolvimento Sustentável\", \"Ecodesenvolvimento\", \"Sociedades Sustentáveis\", \"Comunidades Sustentáveis\", termos estes, abordados nos Acordos/Encontros Internacionais, configurando-se como um panorama histórico da questão ambiental e a cidade. Segue-se com as definições de indicadores, índices e princípios de sustentabilidade urbana e aescolha de cinco experiências apoiadas pelos critérios de representatividade do diferencial entre elas, pelo pioneirismo, pelo reconhecimento nos meios especializados e pelo potencial de difusão. Considerou-se também importante, a inclusão de experiências internacionais que se destacassem por seu grau de inovação, estruturação e consolidação. Esta soma de saberes específicos contribuiu para a formulação de um quadro-síntese dos indicadores de sustentabilidade urbana aplicáveis ao conjunto habitacional \'Parque Residencial Manaus\'. / This research proposes the application of urban sustainability indicators in a public housing in the city of Manaus, Amazonas, since the principles of sustainable development investigated in successful experiences in Europe and Brazil. The examples studied, called sustainable neighborhoods, are urban initiatives are committed to the sustainable development indicators which offer a new model of urban settlement. This model emphasizes the rational use of natural resources, the use of green materials, renewable sources of energy, waste control, reuse of rainwater, incentives for the \'non-use of cars\' promoting the pedestrian, the cyclist and public transportation to improve the quality of life for its residents. For this, the methodology is guided in a corpus of theoretical ideas that have been discussed on the sustainability of propositions that are presented with different adjectives such as \"Sustainable Development\", \"Ecodevelopment\", \"Sustainable Societies\", \"Sustainable Communities\", terms discussed in the Agreements / International Meetings, configuring it as a historical overview of environmental issues and the city. Then, it presents the definitions of indicators, indices and principles of urban sustainability and the choice of five experiments that were chosen using the representativeness criteria of the differential between them, the pioneering, recognition in specialist circles and the diffusion potential. It was also important to include international experiences that stood out for their musical innovation, restructuring and consolidation. This sum of specific knowledge contributed to formulate of a summary table of urban sustainability indicators that were applied to the public housing \'Parque Residencial Manaus\'.

Um dos principais desafios atuais da humanidade é a sustentabilidade planetária, isto é, os aspectos ambiental, econômico e social da Terra. Estimativas das Nações Unidas apontam que, em 2050, 66% da população mundial será urbana, o que significa que as cidades têm um papel de destaque no desafio de busca da sustentabilidade. Nesse contexto, o objetivo deste trabalho é indicar os critérios, os procedimentos e as práticas necessárias a serem utilizadas para uma cidade se tornar mais sustentável. A literatura mostra a grande amplitude do tema, das definições dos termos e as dificuldades e discussões a respeito do assunto. A partir da revisão da literatura, os Compromissos de Aalborg um guia de dez objetivos a serem seguidos para o alcance de mais sustentabilidade urbana passaram a servir como um norteador de temáticas relevantes relacionadas a cidades mais sustentáveis. Além da revisão bibliográfica, os indicadores de duas iniciativas da sociedade civil, o Programa Cidades Sustentáveis, no Brasil, e a European Sustainable Cities, foram contemplados na discussão. Em seguida, realizou-se um cotejamento entre as abordagens da literatura científica, os indicadores das iniciativas supracitadas e os Compromissos de Aalborg. O resultado foi a identificação de que os Compromissos de Aalborg têm uma correspondência científica e, portanto, possibilitam o estabelecimento de critérios para cidades mais sustentáveis, tornando-se, assim, uma referência para a discussão desse tema / One of the major current challenges of humanity is planetary sustainability in the environmental, economic and social sense. The United Nations estimates that by 2050, 66% of the worlds population will be urban, which means that cities will have a prominent role in reaching global sustainability. It is in this context that this work seeks to identify the key criteria, procedures and practices for cities to become more sustainable. Current literature demonstrates great breadth in the subject. It was found in the literature review that the Aalborg Commitments, a ten commitment guide to urban sustainability, is a guiding source for the achievement of sustainable cities. Indicators from two civil society initiatives, the \"Sustainable Cities Program\" in Brazil, and the \"European Sustainable Cities were also included in the discussion. Next, a comparison was made between the approaches of the scientific literature, the indicators of the two initiatives indicated above, and the Aalborg Commitments. It was found that the Aalborg Commitments have a scientific basis, and thus, allow for the establishment of criteria for more sustainable cities. In this way, the Aalborg Commitments become a reference for the discussion of urban sustainability

Managing stormwater sustainably in the face of extreme weather events has increasingly been recognized as a strategy for climate adaptation in the urban planning context. Sustainable stormwater management intends to reduce urban vulnerability while ensuring the overall sustainability and robustness of future cities. To add to the emerging research field of green infrastructure, the objective of the study is to explore the role of multi-functional solutions as a climate change response in urban planning and development. This study has been driven by an inductive research process and draws on empirical data collection through workshops and interviews with City Hall officials in Motala City. The study concludes that despite the lack of preventative planning to anticipate climate change, city renewal and urban development of Motala City presented a window of opportunity to implement potential multi-functional stormwater solutions in the urban environment through urban planning. Further, increased focus on internal and external collaboration through the process of envisioning the future of the city have enabled new forms of governance and facilitated arenas for public acceptance and an integrative planning-approach. Lastly, discourses on attractiveness enabled greenery to be viewed from a social, economic and environmental perspective, supporting multi-functional stormwater solutions as a strategy for climate adaptation and urban sustainability.