Castán Broto, V. orcid.org/0000-0002-3175-9859, Westman, L. orcid.org/0000-0003-4599-4996 and Huang, P. orcid.org/0000-0002-7573-715X (2023) How hegemonic discourses of sustainability influence urban climate action. Buildings and Cities, 4 (1). pp. 973-989. ISSN 2632-6655
Abstract
Sustainability discourses influence the practices of urban climate action by establishing objectives and ways of doing things. Key concepts such as ‘risk’, ‘resilience’ and ‘efficiency’ have been central in the history of sustainability discourses, but their influence has changed over time. The use of these terms is analysed in policy narratives of urban climate action, exploring how they are deployed in policy and practice. A document database (n = 463) was analysed to show how the terms have evolved from their application in specific contexts to a more open interpretation in which different forms of environmental action are linked to development. Interviews with practitioners (n = 100) were analysed to reveal the influence of these narratives and how they organise action in urban environments. Three tensions emerge from the mobilisations of hegemonic discourses in practice: the contradiction between facilitating harmonised approaches across locations while at the same time scaling up action; the contradiction between implementing action in place and providing frameworks of action that can be evaluated at the global scale; and the challenge between identifying sources of leadership and accepting the increasing importance of multiple actors in local climate action. These tensions open opportunities to disrupt climate change adaptation discourses.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 The Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. |
Keywords: | cities; climate adaptation; climate policy; climate risk; efficiency; environmental discourses; professionals; resilience; sustainability; urban climate action |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Faculty of Social Sciences Research Institute |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number EUROPEAN COMMISSION - HORIZON 2020 804051 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 16 Jan 2025 13:58 |
Last Modified: | 17 Jan 2025 08:00 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Ubiquity Press, Ltd. |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.5334/bc.390 |
Related URLs: | |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:221870 |