A systematic review of urban sustainability assessment literature

Sustainability (Switzerland)

Volumn 9, Issue 11, 2017, Pages

  Cohen, Matthew ^a  

^a FURMAN UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Sustainability assessment; Sustainable cities; Sustainable urban development; Urban sustainability assessment

Indexed keywords

ASSESSMENT METHOD; CAPITAL CITY; ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATOR; IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS; LITERATURE REVIEW; SUSTAINABILITY; SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT; URBAN AREA; URBAN DEVELOPMENT; URBANIZATION;

EID: 85033700589     PISSN: None     EISSN: 20711050     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.3390/su9112048     Document Type: Review

References (101)

1. Newman, P.; Jennings, I. Cities as Sustainable Ecosystems; Island Press: Washington, DC, USA, 2008
2. Wu, J. Urban sustainability: An inevitable goal of landscape research. Landsc. Ecol. 2014, 25, 1-4
3. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2014 Revision, Highlights; United Nations: New York, NY, USA, 2015
4. Keivani, R. A review of the main challenges to urban sustainability. Int. J. Urban Sustain. Dev. 2010, 1, 5-16
5. Pope, J.; Annandale, D.; Morrison-Saunders, A. Conceptualising sustainability assessment. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2004, 24, 595-616
6. Gibson, R.B. Beyond the pillars: Sustainability assessment as a framework for effective integration of social, economic and ecological considerations in significant decision-making. J. Environ. Assess. Policy Manag. 2006, 8, 259-280
7. Ness, B.; Urbel-Piirsalu, E.; Anderberg, S.; Olsson, L. Categorising tools for sustainability assessment. Ecol. Econ. 2007, 60, 498-508
8. Kumar, R.; Murty, H.R.; Gupta, S.K.; Dikshit, A.K. An overview of sustainability assessment methodologies. Ecol. Indic. 2012, 15, 281-299
9. Davidson, K.M.; Kellett, J.; Wilson, L.; Pullen, S. Assessing urban sustainability from a social democratic perspective: A thematic approach. Local Environ. 2012, 17, 57-73
10. Ding, X.; Zhong, W.; Shearmur, R.G.; Zhang, X.; Huisingh, D. An inclusive model for assessing the sustainability of cities in developing countries-trinity of cities' sustainability from spatial, logical and time dimensions (TCS-SLTD). J. Clean. Prod. 2015, 109, 62-75
11. Rockstrom, J.; Steffen, W.; Noone, K.; Persson, A.; Chapin, F.S., III; Lambin, E.F.; Lenton, T.M.; Scheffer, M.; Folke, C.; Schellnhuber, H.-J.; et al. A safe operating space for humanity. Nature 2009, 461, 472-475
12. Raworth, K. A Safe and Just Space for Humanity: Can We Live within the Doughnut? Oxfam GB: Oxford, UK, 2012; pp. 1-26
13. Dearing, J.A.; Wang, R.; Zhang, K.; Dyke, J.G.; Haberl, H.; Hossain, M.S.; Langdon, P.G.; Lenton, T.M.; Raworth, K.; Brown, S.; et al. Safe and just operating spaces for regional social-ecological systems. Glob. Environ. Chang. 2014, 28, 227-238
14. Steffen, W.; Richardson, K.; Rockström, J.; Cornell, S.E.; Fetzer, I.; Bennett, E.M.; Biggs, R.; Carpenter, S.R.; Vries, W.D.;Wit, C.A.D.; et al. Planetary boundaries: Guiding human development on a changing planet. Science 2015, 347, 1259855
15. Forman, R.T.T.; Wu, J. Where to put the next billion people. Nature 2016, 537, 608-611
16. Xing, Y.; Horner, R.M.W.; El-Haram, M.A.; Bebbington, J. A framework model for assessing sustainability impacts of urban development. Account. Forum 2009, 33, 209-224
17. Boyko, C.T.; Gaterell, M.R.; Barber, A.R.G.; Brown, J.; Bryson, J.R.; Butler, D.; Caputo, S.; Caserio, M.; Coles, R.; Cooper, R.; et al. Benchmarking sustainability in cities: The role of indicators and future scenarios. Glob. Environ. Chang. Part Hum. Policy Dimens. 2012, 22, 245-254
18. Zhou, N.; He, G.; Williams, C. China's Development of Low-Carbon Eco-Cities and Associated Indicators Systems; Ernest Orlanda Lawrence & Berkeley National Laboratory: Berkeley, CA, USA, 2012
19. Ameen, R.F.M.; Mourshed, M.; Li, H. A critical review of environmental assessment tools for sustainable urban design. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2015, 55, 110-125
20. Olalla-Tarraga, M.A. A conceptual framework to assess sustainability in urban ecological systems. Int. J. Sustain. Dev. World Ecol. 2006, 13, 1-15
21. Sumner, A. Measuring sustainable development in the era of globalisation: Can it be done and what way ahead? World Rev. Sci. Technol. Sustain. Dev. 2004, 1, 116-127
22. Davidson, K.M. Reporting systems for sustainability: What are they measuring? Soc. Indic. Res. 2011, 100, 351-365
23. Chesson, J. Sustainable development: Connecting practice with theory. J. Environ. Policy Manag. 2013, 15, 1350002-1-1350002-27
24. Ciegis, R.; Ramanauskiene, J.; Startiene, G. Theoretical reasoning of the use of indicators and indices for sustainable development assessment. Inzinerine Ekon.-Eng. Econ. 2009, 3, 33-40
25. Sala, S.; Ciuffo, B.; Nijkamp, P. A systematic framework for sustainability assessment. Ecol. Econ. 2015, 119, 314-325
26. Keirstead, J.; Leach, M. Bridging the gaps between theory and practice: A service niche approach to urban sustainability indicators. Sustain. Dev. 2008, 16, 329-340
27. Gonzalez, A.; Donnelly, A.; Jones, M. Community of practice approach to developing urban sustainability indicators. J. Environ. Assess. Policy Manag. 2011, 13, 591-617
28. Mulrow, C.D. The medical review article: State of the Science. Ann. Intern. Med. 1987, 106, 485-488
29. Velten, S.; Leventon, J.; Jager, N.; Newig, J. What is sustainable agriculture? A systematic review. Sustainability 2015, 7, 7833-7865
30. Yang, S.; Song, Y.; Tong, S. Sustainable retailing in the fashion industry: A systematic literature review. Sustainability 2017, 9, 1266
31. Moher, D.; Liberati, A.; Tetzlaff, J.; Altman, D.G.; The PRISMA Group. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. PLoS Med. 2009, 6, 1-6
32. Kates, R.W.; Clark, W.C.; Corell, R.; Hall, M.J.; Jaeger, C.C.; Lowe, I.; McCarthy, J.J.; Schellnhuber, H.-J.; Bolin, B.; Dickson, N.M.; et al. Sustainability science. Science 2001, 292, 641-642
33. Lamorgese, L.; Geneletti, D. Sustainability principles in strategic environmental assessment: A framework for analysis and examples from Italian urban planning. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2013, 42, 116-126
34. Stuart, J.; Collins, P.; Alger, M.; Whitelaw, G. Embracing sustainability: The incorporation of sustainability principles in municipal planning and policy in four mid-sized municipalities in Ontario, Canada. Local Environ. 2016, 21, 219-240
35. Yigitcanlar, T.; Dur, F.; Dizdaroglu, D. Towards prosperous sustainable cities: A multiscalar urban sustainability assessment approach. Habitat Int. 2015, 45, 36-46
36. Schensul, J.J. Community, culture and sustainability in multilevel dynamic systems intervention science. Am. J. Community Psychol. 2009, 43, 241-256
37. Porio, E. Sustainable development goals and quality of life targets: Insights from Metro Manila. Curr. Sociol. Monogr. 2015, 63, 244-260
38. Atkinson, A.; Hatcher, L. The compass index of sustainability: Prototype for a comprehensive sustainability information system. J. Environ. Assess. Policy Manag. 2001, 3, 509-532
39. Blackwood, D.J.; Gilmour, D.J.; Isaacs, J.P.; Kurka, T.; Falconer, R.E. Sustainable urban development in practice: The SAVE concept. Environ. Plan. B 2014, 41, 885-906
40. Mori, K.; Yamashita, T. Methodological framework of sustainability assessment in city sustainability index (CSI): A concept of constraint and maximisation indicators. Habitat Int. 2015, 45, 10-14
41. Mori, K.; Fujii, T.; Yamashita, T.; Mimura, Y.; Uchiyama, Y.; Hayashi, K. Visualization of a City Sustainability Index (CSI): Towards transdisciplinary approaches involving multiple stakeholders. Sustainability 2015, 7, 12402-12424
42. Abdullahi, S.; Pradhan, B.; Jebur, M.N. GIS-based sustainable city compactness assessment using integration of MCDM, Bayes theorem and RADAR technology. Geocarto Int. 2015, 30, 365-387
43. The Pearl Rating System for Estidama Community Rating System; Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council: Abu Dhabi, UAE, 2010
44. Alwaer, H.; Kirk, R.D. Matching a community assessment tool to the requirements of practice. Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. Urban Des. Plan. 2015, 169, 216-229
45. Berardi, U. Sustainability assessment of urban communities through rating systems. Environ. Dev. Sustain. 2013, 15, 1573-1591
46. Bourdic, L.; Salat, S.; Nowacki, C. Assessing cities: A new system of cross-scale spatial indicators. Build. Res. Inf. 2012, 40, 592-605
47. Braulio-Gonzalo, M.; Dolores Bovea, M.; Jose Rua, M. Sustainability on the urban scale: Proposal of a structure of indicators for the Spanish context. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2015, 53, 16-30
48. BREEAM Communities. BREEAM Communities Technical Manual; BREEAM Communities: Watford, UK, 2012; pp. 1-8
49. Browne, D.; O'Regan, B.; Moles, R. A comparative analysis of the application of sustainability metric tools using Tipperary Town, Ireland, as a case study. Manag. Environ. Qual. Int. J. 2005, 16, 37-54
50. Cappuyns, V. Inclusion of social indicators in decision support tools for the selection of sustainable site remediation options. J. Environ. Manag. 2016, 184, 1-12
51. Murakami, S.; Asami, M.Y.; Ikaga, T.; Ishida, H.; Inoue, K.; Iwamura, K. Environmental Performance Assessment Tool for Municipalities: Overview of CASBEE for Cities; Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency: Tokyo, Japan, 2013; pp. 1-3
52. De Oliveira Cavalcanti, C.; Limont, M.; Dziedzic, M.; Fernandes, V. Sustainability assessment methodology of urban mobility projects. Land Use Policy 2017, 60, 334-342
53. Da Cruz, N.F.; Marques, R.C. Scorecards for sustainable local governments. Cities 2014, 39, 165-170
54. Dezelan, T.; Maksuti, A.; Ursic, M. Capacity of local development planning in Slovenia: Strengths and weaknesses of local sustainable development strategies. Lex Localis J. Local Self-Gov. 2014, 12, 547-573
55. Egilmez, G.; Gumus, S.; Kucukvar, M. Environmental sustainability benchmarking of the U.S. and Canada metropoles: An expert judgment-based multi-criteria decision making approach. Cities 2015, 42, 31-41
56. Elgert, L. The double edge of cutting edge: Explaining adoption and nonadoption of the STAR rating system and insights for sustainability indicators. Ecol. Indic. 2016, 67, 556-564
57. Estoque, R.C.; Murayama, Y. Measuring sustainability based upon various perspectives: A case study of a hill station in Southeast Asia. AMBIO 2014, 43, 943-956
58. Fitzgerald, B.G.; O'Doherty, T.; Moles, R.; O'Regan, B. A quantitative method for the evaluation of policies to enhance urban sustainability. Ecol. Indic. 2012, 18, 371-378
59. Gutowska, J.; Sleszynski, J.; Grodzinska-Jurczak, M. Selecting sustainability indicators for local community-Case study of Milanówek municipality, Poland. Probl. Sustain. Dev. 2012, 7, 77-86
60. He, J.; Bao, C.K.; Shu, T.F.; Yun, X.X.; Jiang, D.; Brwon, L. Framework for integration of urban planning, strategic environmental assessment and ecological planning for urban sustainability within the context of China. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2011, 31, 549-560
61. Huang, S.-L.; Yeh, C.-T.; Budd, W.W.; Chen, L.-L. A sensitivity model (SM) approach to analyze urban development in Taiwan based on sustainability indicators. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2009, 29, 116-125
62. Huang, C.-L.; Vause, J.; Ma, H.-W.; Yu, C.-P. Using material/substance flow analysis to support sustainable development assessment: A literature review and outlook. Resour. Conserv. Recycl. 2012, 68, 104-116
63. Huang, Q.; Zheng, X.; Hu, Y. Analysis of land-use emergy indicators based on urban metabolism: A case study for Beijing. Sustainability 2015, 7, 7473-7491
64. Huang, L.; Wu, J.; Yan, L. Defining and measuring urban sustainability: A review of indicators. Landsc. Ecol. 2015, 30, 1175-1193
65. Komeily, A.; Srinivasan, R.S. A need for balanced approach to neighborhood sustainability assessments: A critical review and analysis. Sustain. Cities Soc. 2015, 18, 32-43
66. Kropp, W.W.; Lein, J.K. Scenario analysis for urban sustainability assessment: A spatial multicriteria decision-analysis approach. Environ. Pract. 2013, 15, 133-146
67. Lavalle, C.; Demicheli, L.; Turchini, M.; Casals-Carrasco, P.; Niederhuber, M. Monitoring megacities: The MURBANDY/MOLAND approach. Dev. Pract. 2001, 11, 350-357
68. Lin, J.; Li, Y.; Wang, W.; Cui, S.; Wei, X. An eco-efficiency-based urban sustainability assessment method and its application. Int. J. Sustain. Dev. World Ecol. 2010, 17, 356-361
69. Masnavi, M.R. Measuring urban sustainability: Developing a conceptual framework for bridging the gap between theoretical levels and the operational levels. Int. J. Environ. Res. 2007, 1, 188-197
70. McGranahan, G.; Satterthwaite, D. Urban centers: An assessment of sustainability. Annu. Rev. Environ. Resour. 2003, 28, 243-274
71. Michael, F.L.; Noor, Z.Z.; Figueroa, M.J. Review of urban sustainability indicators assessment-Case study between Asian countries. Habitat Int. 2014, 44, 491-500
72. Mitropoulos, L.K.; Prevedouros, P.D. Urban transportation vehicle sustainability assessment with a comparative study of weighted sum and fuzzy methods. J. Urban Plan. Dev. 2016, 142
73. Mörtberg, U.; Haas, J.; Zetterberg, A.; Franklin, J.P.; Jonsson, D.; Deal, B. Urban ecosystems and sustainable urban development-analysing and assessing interacting systems in the Stockholm region. Urban Ecosyst. 2013, 16, 763-782
74. Mori, K.; Christodoulou, A. Review of sustainability indices and indicators: Towards a new city sustainability index (CSI). Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2012, 32, 94-106
75. Munier, N. Methodology to select a set of urban sustainability indicators to measure the state of the city, and performance assessment. Ecol. Indic. 2011, 11, 1020-1026
76. Reith, A.; Orova, M. Do green neighbourhood ratings cover sustainability? Ecol. Indic. 2015, 48, 660-672
77. Ries, M.; Trotz, M.; Vairavamoorthy, K. Fit-for-purpose sustainability index: A simplified approach for U.S. water utility sustainability assessment. Water Pract. Technol. 2016, 11, 35-47
78. Schetke, S.; Haase, D.; Kötter, T. Towards sustainable settlement growth: A new multi-criteria assessment for implementing environmental targets into strategic urban planning. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2012, 32, 195-210
79. Sciopini, A.; Mazzi, A.; Zuliani, F.; Mason, M. The ISO 14031 standard to guide the urban sustainability measurement process: An Italian experience. J. Clean. Prod. 2007, 16, 1247-1257
80. Sharifi, A.; Murayama, A. A critical review of seven selected neighborhood sustainability assessment tools. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2013, 38, 73-87
81. Sharifi, A.; Murayama, A. Viability of using global standards for neighborhood sustainability assessment: Insights from a comparative case study. J. Environ. Plan. Manag. 2015, 58, 1-23
82. Shen, L.; Ochoa, J.J.; Shah, M.N.; Zhang, X. The application of urban sustainability indicators-a comparison between various practices. Habitat Int. 2011, 35, 17-29
83. STAR Community Rating System Version 2; STAR Communities: Washington, DC, USA, 2016; pp. 1-141
84. Sun, L.; Ni, J.; Borthwick, A.G.L. Rapid assessment of sustainability in mainland China. J. Environ. Manag. 2010, 91, 1021-1031
85. Tran, L. An interactive method to select a set of sustainable urban development indicators. Ecol. Indic. 2016, 61, 418-427
86. U.S. Green Building Council. LEED v 4 for Neighborhood Development; U.S. Green Building Council: Washington, DC, USA, 2016; pp. 1-161
87. Van Dijk, M.P.; Mingshun, Z. Sustainability indices as a tool for urban managers, evidence from four medium-sized Chinese cities. Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2005, 25, 667-688
88. Venkatesh, G.; Brattebo, H.; Saegrov, S.; Behzadian, K.; Kapelan, Z. Metabolism-modelling approaches to long-term sustainability assessment of urban water services. Urban Water J. 2016, 14, 11-22
89. Verovsek, S.; Juvancic, M.; Zupancic, T. Recognizing and fostering local spatial identities using a sustainability assessment framework. Ann. Anali Za Istrske Mediter. Stud. Ser. Hist. Sociol. 2016, 26, 573-584
90. Wangel, J.; Wallhagen, M.; Malmqvist, T.; Finnveden, G. Certification systems for sustainable neighbourhoods: What do they really certify? Environ. Impact Assess. Rev. 2016, 56, 200-213
91. Wei, Y.; Huang, C.; Lam, P.T.I.; Sha, Y.; Feng, Y. Using urban-carrying capacity as a benchmark for sustainable urban development: an empirical study of Beijing. Sustainability 2015, 7, 3244-3268
92. Yin, K.; Wang, R.; An, Q.; Yao, L.; Liang, J. Using eco-efficiency as an indicator for sustainable urban development: A case study of Chinese provincial capital cities. Ecol. Indic. 2014, 36, 665-671
93. Yoon, J.; Park, J. Comparative analysis of material criteria in neighborhood sustainability assessment tools and urban design guidelines: Cases of the UK, the US, Japan, and Korea. Sustainability 2015, 7, 14450-14487
94. Zanella, A.; Camanho, A.S.; Dias, T.G. The assessment of cities' livability integrating human wellbeing and environmental impact. Ann. Oper. Res. 2015, 226, 695-726
95. Cohen, M.; Wiek, A.; Kay, B.; Harlow, J. Aligning public participation to stakeholders' sustainability literacy-A case study on sustainable urban development in Phoenix, Arizona. Sustainability 2015, 7, 8709-8728
96. Robinson, J. Squaring the circle? Some thoughts on the idea of sustainable development. Ecol. Econ. 2004, 48, 369-384
97. Redclift, M. An oxymoron comes of age. Sustain. Dev. 2005, 13, 212-227
98. Collins, J.C.; Porras, J.I. Building your company's vision. Harv. Bus. Rev. 1996, September-October, 65-77
99. Nevens, F.; Dessein, J.; Meul, M.; Rogge, E.; Verbruggen, I.; Mulier, A.; Van Passel, S.; Lepoutre, J.; Hongenaert, M. 'On tomorrow's grounds', Flemish agriculture in 2030: A case of participatory translation of sustainability principles into a vision for the future. J. Clean. Prod. 2008, 16, 1062-1070
100. Miller, T.R.; Wiek, A.; Sarewitz, D.; Robinson, J.; Olsson, L.; Kriebel, D.; Loorbach, D. The future of sustainability science: A solutions-oriented research agenda. Sustain. Sci. 2014, 9, 239-246
101. Reed, M.S.; Fraser, E.D.G.; Dougill, A.J. An adaptive learning process for developing and applying sustainability indicators with local communities. Ecol. Econ. 2006, 59, 406-418