How Sharing Can Contribute to More Sustainable Cities

Abstract

Abstract:Recently, much of the literature on sharing in cities has focused on the sharing economy, in which people use online platforms to share underutilized assets in the marketplace. This view of sharing is too narrow for cities, as it neglects the myriad of ways, reasons, and scales in which citizens share in urban environments. Research presented here by the Liveable Cities team in the form of participant workshops in Lancaster and Birmingham, UK, suggests that a broader approach to Sustainability 2017, 9, 701; doi:10.3390/su9050701 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability Sustainability 2017, 9, 701 2 of 16 understanding sharing in cities is essential. The research also highlighted tools and methods that may be used to help to identify sharing in communities. The paper ends with advice to city stakeholders, such as policymakers, urban planners, and urban designers, who are considering how to enhance sustainability in cities through sharing.

Social Innovations for Sustainable Consumption and Their Perceived Sustainability Effects in Tehran

“…Alternative consumption practices promoted by social innovations claim to be more sustainable than conventional practices carried out by consumers. For instance, they are claimed to be energy-efficient or to reduce waste [8,25,26]. With regard to transportation, it has been indicated that car sharing could result in CO 2 -reduction per average user and that free-floating car-sharing systems could reduce private car ownership [27].…”

“…Taking that into consideration, social innovations for sustainable consumption (SISC) are here defined as to be those initiatives that not only have innovative characteristics and offer alternative solutions to mainstream practices, but also have at least some potentials for promoting greater sustainability when compared to current mainstream consumption practices. The phenomenon of SISC has been further highlighted as a powerful resource for tackling social and environmental challenges [8,9].…”

Sharing Cities and Commoning: An Alternative Narrative for Just and Sustainable Cities

“…Shared facilities may take the form of a network of social entrepreneurs such as Enspiral [9] (p. 104) or an online platform owned as a cooperative [9] (p. 112). However, in many work-related cases (7) the sharing practice may also encompass building up capability. Thus, the One-stop-shop of Social Clauses in Rennes, France, is a municipal procurement contractual practice that requires social inclusion among its suppliers, thereby strengthening the capability of workers with low skill levels [9] (p. 120).…”

“…With the rise of digitalization, so-called sharing economy online platforms that enable collaborative consumption and production are also reshaping urban economies [6]. Boyko et al [7] argued that the sharing economy presents a very narrow view of the potential of sharing to contribute to more sustainable cities. In contrast, the Sharing Cities discourse includes, but also transcends, the sole sharing economy approach, acknowledging that in cities, both commercial and communal forms of sharing may coexist [1,7].…”

“…Boyko et al [7] argued that the sharing economy presents a very narrow view of the potential of sharing to contribute to more sustainable cities. In contrast, the Sharing Cities discourse includes, but also transcends, the sole sharing economy approach, acknowledging that in cities, both commercial and communal forms of sharing may coexist [1,7]. The Sharing Cities narrative has also been identified as an emerging counter-narrative to the neoliberal imagery of urban development [2].…”