A framework of sustainable behaviours that can be enabled through the design of neighbourhood‐scale developments

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present, and explain, the development of a framework of sustainable behaviours that can, potentially, be enabled through the design of neighbourhood-scale developments. To be sustainable, such developments need to be technically sustainable (i.e. in terms of materials, construction methods and so on) and to support behavioural sustainability by their residents. This paper focuses on the latter. Drawn from a literature review, the paper presents eight sustainable behaviours that are argued to be enabled by specific design features of neighbourhood developments. These are the following: use less energy in the home; use less water in the home; recycle waste; maintain and encourage biodiversity and ecologically important habitats; make fewer and shorter journeys by fuel inefficient modes of transport; make essential journeys by fuel efficient modes of transport; take part in local community groups, local decision making and local formal and informal social activities and use local services, amenities and businesses. Both theory and empirical evidence underpinning the claimed relationships between the design features and the eight behaviours are presented. The framework, and accompanying explanations, are offered as tools for further research, and as references for practitioners such as urban designers, architects and planners seeking some clarity on designing for behavioural sustainability at the neighbourhood scale. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Neighbourhood Design and Sustainable Lifestyles

“…It is now widely accepted that the ways in which the built environment is planned, constructed and used are unsustainable (Haughton and Hunter, 1994;Williams et al, 2000). For the last twenty years, finding more sustainable ways to develop the built environment has been the focus of much theoretical and practical effort.…”

Neighbourhood facilities for sustainability

“…It is important to note that the creation of these facilities may not necessarily mean that they will be supported, or change local behaviours [4]. The likelihood of this however may be reduced by the requirement within this model for communities to develop the facilities themselves rather than for these to be provided by external parties such as government.…”

“…In particular, these facilities and the associated technology aim to influence day-today living patterns and behaviours to support sustainability. The approach therefore aims to ensure that both technical and behavioural sustainability, as defined by Williams [4], exists.…”

Paradoxes of design: energy and water consumption and the aestheticization of Norwegian bathrooms 1990–2008

“…The increased visibility of bathrooms has been used to create a space of possibilities, which has to be filled with meaning by refl exive consumers. Williams and Dair (2007) propose eight sustainable behaviours that could be enabled by design features. Focusing on the first two aspects -use less energy and water -we discovered that four material elements in different ways seem central for both aesthetic values and energy and water consumption in Bonytt.…”

“…In this paper we study aestheticized energy and water consumption, which are usually held to be two important concerns within the broader and conceptually contested term sustainability (Williams and Dair, 2007). We do so by reconstructing the evolution of the Norwegian bathroom from a frugal space devoted to cleanliness to a potential marker of identity and how this may have affected energy and water consumption.…”