Across the UK local communities and groups are involved in projects which seek to create more sustainable cities, towns and communities in the future. Some of these are the result of specific initiatives, often led by Governments, but others are the product of locally inspired ideas.
Our research has been seeking to understand how the visions behind such initiatives have originated and evolved as these projects develop. Drawing on reports, local accounts and other written sources we have been exploring the visionary journey involved in 4 local sustainable community initiatives. Each represents a different local outcome and imagination of a future, but they all share both a stated aim of creating a sustainable community and have over time been able to encourage wider involvement and build coalitions as they realise their vision.
The process of envisioning, involving the articulation of visions to that others can be encouraged to participate has in turn resulted in changes to visions, compromises have had to be made, and at times, initiatives have been 'taken over' by groups.
The findings from the research are in two parts. First we relate the story of how each vision has been articulated, debated, shaped and developed through the process of community development. These stories offer insights into who have been included (and included), what each stakeholder sought to give and get from the process and how the sustainable community has emerged. The second part of the research stands back from each case study to reflect on both the processed involved and the communities produced, asking searching questions about how others can learn from each example and how our understanding of community building be enhanced.
Both set of findings have been produced as a set of Working Papers - designed to capture our current analysis and insights, but providing opportunities for others (especially those involved) to add to the research.
Working Papers Series
General discussion papers:
RCP1 - (Re-) Visions of Resilient and Sustainable Communities (pdf)
Case study papers (see separate pages):
Lochgelly
WP1a – Scotland’s Sustainable Communities Initiative Exemplar
WP1b - Envisioning a Connected and Comfortable Community
Braes of Balvonie/Scotland's Housing Expo
WP2a – Scotland’s Housing Expo
WP2b - Constructing Visions of the Future for Scotland’s Housing
Findhorn Duneland Ecovillage
WP3a – Ecovillage expansion
WP3b - Envisioning ecovillage development
Gartcosh-Glenboig
WP4a – Planning Urban Growth
WP4b - Slotting Urban Growth into the Landscape
Interpretative and discussion papers:
WP5 – Imagining future places: comparing visions from the case studies (to follow)
WP6 - Creating sustainable communities: comparing local and generic visions (to follow)
WP7 - Envisioning sustainable communities: ‘we’ll know it when we see it’ (to follow)
Our research has been seeking to understand how the visions behind such initiatives have originated and evolved as these projects develop. Drawing on reports, local accounts and other written sources we have been exploring the visionary journey involved in 4 local sustainable community initiatives. Each represents a different local outcome and imagination of a future, but they all share both a stated aim of creating a sustainable community and have over time been able to encourage wider involvement and build coalitions as they realise their vision.
The process of envisioning, involving the articulation of visions to that others can be encouraged to participate has in turn resulted in changes to visions, compromises have had to be made, and at times, initiatives have been 'taken over' by groups.
The findings from the research are in two parts. First we relate the story of how each vision has been articulated, debated, shaped and developed through the process of community development. These stories offer insights into who have been included (and included), what each stakeholder sought to give and get from the process and how the sustainable community has emerged. The second part of the research stands back from each case study to reflect on both the processed involved and the communities produced, asking searching questions about how others can learn from each example and how our understanding of community building be enhanced.
Both set of findings have been produced as a set of Working Papers - designed to capture our current analysis and insights, but providing opportunities for others (especially those involved) to add to the research.
Working Papers Series
General discussion papers:
RCP1 - (Re-) Visions of Resilient and Sustainable Communities (pdf)
Case study papers (see separate pages):
Lochgelly
WP1a – Scotland’s Sustainable Communities Initiative Exemplar
WP1b - Envisioning a Connected and Comfortable Community
Braes of Balvonie/Scotland's Housing Expo
WP2a – Scotland’s Housing Expo
WP2b - Constructing Visions of the Future for Scotland’s Housing
Findhorn Duneland Ecovillage
WP3a – Ecovillage expansion
WP3b - Envisioning ecovillage development
Gartcosh-Glenboig
WP4a – Planning Urban Growth
WP4b - Slotting Urban Growth into the Landscape
Interpretative and discussion papers:
WP5 – Imagining future places: comparing visions from the case studies (to follow)
WP6 - Creating sustainable communities: comparing local and generic visions (to follow)
WP7 - Envisioning sustainable communities: ‘we’ll know it when we see it’ (to follow)