Environmentally Sustainable Construction: Knowledge and Learning in London Planning Departments

Abstract

Environmentally sustainable construction is now recognised as a significant element of the broader sustainable development agenda and planners are being called upon to play a role in delivering more sustainable patterns of construction and development. This puts particular demands on the knowledge resources of planners since knowledge is implicated in the power relations between planners and developers. This paper examines the interrelationship between knowledge of environmentally sustainable construction and practice in planning departments. Drawing on a survey of and interviews with planners in London, it discusses the construction of knowledge within the dynamics of planning organisations and the potential for learning to promote a more sustainable built environment. Wenger's concept of communities of practice frames the analysis, alongside consideration of the translation of knowledge into bureaucratic and usable forms and the role of knowledge brokers in this process.

Learning to build sustainable communities: an interdependency network perspective

“…Arguably it was in this context that a range of human and non-human intermediaries helped those involved to translate their strategies in ways that helped them to move forward in their attempt to facilitate the twin tasks of growth and sustainable development. Because of the rise of the spatial planning agenda, there is an assumption that planners will transform the way they work and act as knowledge brokers (Rydin et al, 2007). However, because of the pressures involved, planners have little time to reflect on what they do and they often learn reactively during 'moments' of realization (Eraut and Hirsh 2010).…”

Multi-performance optimisation framework for the selection of structural alternatives based on sustainable qualities

“…In addition, the implementation of sustainable principles in construction projects complicates this situation further: a clear understanding of the decision-making processes and stakeholders' preferences are needed. (Rydin et al, 2007). In this manner, rather than proposing a "correct -global" decision the goal becomes to describe and articulate a decision that best suits the decision makers' current needs and their understanding of the problem.…”

The skills agenda and the competencies for managing diversity and space

“…Citizens need to be seen as active co-producers rather that the products of practice. Here, knowledge becomes a resource which planners (and others) use to challenge powerful interests, especially in the property economy in order to democratise decision-making in more effective and inclusive ways (Rydin et al, 2007). They draw on Wenger's (1998) idea of 'Communities of Practice' to highlight the connection between skills, knowledge and learning.…”

“…The process of translating knowledge ensures that it is understandable in different contexts. (Rydin et al, 2007, 368) Translation is not neutral and the transformation of knowledge from, for example, the context of the technical-professional arena into wider public debate is itself a political exercise (Rydin, 2007). The interplay between ethnicity, place and sustainable communities is characterised by tensions between: the legitimisation of difference and the desire to avoid the injustices of separation; the skills of planners and the priorities of community activists; the knowledge set of the policy community and how they value local claims; and between planners and partner professions involved in spatial planning (Carling, 2008).…”

“…The skills to manage difference, translate weakly articulated claims to policy producers and to elevate the everyday experience to the formal world of decision-making are critical dimensions in this endeavour. Rydin et al (2007) identified a difference between empirical, process, predictive and normative knowledge reflecting a range of epistemologies and methods. The problem for planners is that normative knowledge is favoured in professional routines and thus, technical skills are promoted in planning education and practice.…”