The state of play regarding the social sustainability of the construction industry: a systematic review

The social dimensions of sustainability’s three bottom lines are often overlooked in the construction industry. This is despite attempts to find optimal trade-offs between economic growth, environmental impacts, human health and well-being, as well as social considerations. This study reviews the literature on social sustainability (SS) within the construction arena, identifies research gaps and proposes a forward-looking research agenda. This critical review employes the ‘Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses’ (PRISMA) technique to retrieve secondary data on SS from available academic, government and industry documents. The literature analysis focuses on seven themes: (1) definition of SS, (2) the theoretical dimensions of SS, (3) primary stakeholders, (4) policy and guidelines, (5) major SS performance indicators, (6) barriers to SS uptake in the construction industry, and (7) SS drivers in the construction industry. The review identifies primary stakeholders and proposes a list of assessment criteria that can be used by the construction industry in measuring progress towards SS. The study proposes a conceptual model that maps out key stakeholders, the major barriers, and enablers of SS in construction projects. The findings will support the development of SS guidelines specific to the construction industry in Australia as well as overseas.

     

The need for comprehensive and consistent treatment of the nitrogen cycle in nitrogen cycling and mass balance studies: I. Terrestrial nitrogen cycle

A review of conceptual models that scientists use to characterize the nitrogen (N) cycle and to conduct N mass balance studies at global, regional and local scales is presented. Large uncertainties in processes and process rates make it difficult to conduct precise N mass balances and the dominant conceptual model has changed in recent decades. An earlier conceptual model recognized explicitly that human activities, especially agriculture, have both depleted terrestrial N and increased the fixation of atmospheric N in biologically available forms. The current conceptual model does not include adequate treatment of the depletion of the terrestrial N reservoir, the resulting transfer of N to the hydrosphere and atmosphere, or the cycling of terrestrial N below the plow layer. Thus, it delivers an unrealistically limited view of human influences on the N cycle. It is recommended that a comprehensive and consistent treatment of terrestrial N cycling be developed to better facilitate scientific explanation of historical N-related environmental changes and more closely balance N budgets on a range of geographical and temporal scales. Improved N-cycle models will provide an improved scientific basis for answering important resource management and policy questions.     

The role of social sustainability in building assessment

ABSTRACT

Can social sustainability be built? What are the challenges and potential for incorporating the concept of social sustainability into the assessment of building projects? Theoretical approaches to social sustainability are examined for the ways it is applied in practice by building industry stakeholders. A fundamental question is whether and how social sustainability can be measured, assessed and certified in the construction or renewal of housing and neighbourhoods. In addition to physical and functional indicators, it is suggested that certification systems (e.g. the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen – DGNB) should also reward social initiatives. A framework was developed involving 12 indicators grouped three overarching themes: social cohesion; participatory processes; and accessibility to living opportunities. A collaborative case study project involving two Danish social housing neighbourhoods examines how social sustainability indicators could be integrated into the application of certification systems such as the DGNB and whether the certification system can be improved by integrating social and organizational aspects with the existing criteria for physical and functional layout. It is found that certifications must take the housing complex or neighbourhood's relationship with the surrounding city into account, as well as its development over time and flexibility towards future needs.     

Servant of too many masters: Residential water pricing and the challenge of sustainability

This paper discusses the state-of-the-art of the economic debate around water pricing, focussing on residential water supply and sanitation. Water pricing lays at the crossroads of many fields of economic analysis, and may be used to address many different problems: efficient allocation of water resources, ecological sustainability, guarantee of social rights, financial viability of investments. Different problems require different approaches and solutions. Rather than a “magic stick” that solves all problems by simply “getting the price right”, water charges must be seen as one of the many levers that policymakers can use: possibly a very effective one, but keeping in mind that it cannot solve all problems at the same time. Diversely from a simplistic interpretation of mainstream economics, deeply rooted in the European water policy, full-cost recovery and economic efficiency, social and ecological sustainability are separate issues that must not be confounded. This statement leads the way to a wider and more creative use of public finance.     

Urban social sustainability: a study of the Emirati local communities in Al Ain

The present research examines the design of the public neighborhoods in the United Arab Emirates in terms of social sustainability, especially in the city of Al Ain. Based on the relevant principles and indicators of social sustainability in neighborhoods both globally and locally, the research began with an evaluation of the dimensions of social sustainability by adopting a qualitative research method. The research tools included conducting face-to-face interviews with representatives of Emirati families living in public neighborhoods, analyses of the design patterns of some selected neighborhoods, field observations and spatial syntactic analyses. Through this multi-phase analysis, a clearer understanding of the level of social sustainability achieved in the design of public neighborhoods in Al Ain has been realized, and some neighborhood design guidelines have been proposed.     

Legibility of neighborhood parks as a predicator for enhanced social interaction towards social sustainability

Researchers commonly acknowledge the functions of neighborhood parks in terms of social interaction and their potential roles as social integrators. Nevertheless, many cities are facing the problem of underutilized parks which could be due to the park elements that are not legible and appealing. This paper examines the relationship between legibility attributes (clear structure, visual obstacles, and accessibility) with social interaction (park engagement and the intensity of contact) within neighborhood parks. To confirm the extent to which legibility attributes predict social interaction, surveys were conducted with 378 participants in the neighborhoods of Putrajaya, Malaysia. Results revealed that legibility of the neighborhood parks influences duration of use, which in turn increases the potential for social interactions among neighborhood residents. The level of visual obstruction was strongly linked with the quality of the edges and distances between park activities. The findings highlight the importance of legibility in the planning and design of public spaces to encourage residents to stay longer while enhancing interaction in neighborhood parks and ultimately achieving social sustainability.     

Life cycle,sustainability and the transcendent quality of building materials

This paper explores the relationship between the life cycle of engineering works and their sustainable and transcendent qualities, and considers the possibility of creating durable works with ephemeral materials. This paper also studies the impact of urban growth and its infrastructures on the environment through the consumption of raw materials and energy. City metabolism is one of the main causes of environmental deterioration, and present-day tendencies make it foreseeable that both urban and infrastructure development shall continue to increase. Although the expression “sustainable construction” is being used more and more, it is necessary to distinguish between the sustainability of the construction activity and the sustainability of works constructed. Both the materials and technologies used since ancient times have allowed many past works to have lasted thousands of years. Some were made out of permanent materials such as stone while others were made out of more ephemeral materials such as adobe bricks or cob walls. Structures built with Roman cement are still standing after 20 centuries. The overall durability of built structures depends on the durability of their materials. Transcendent construction was made possible either using permanent materials or more ephemeral materials, providing the project had taken the need for maintenance into consideration. The development of building works in a modular fashion makes the repairing action of modifying materials or parts of works possible without destroying its basic structure. With our present-day knowledge, plain concrete permits to create transcendent structures that could last several centuries.     

The sustainability cycle of historic houses and cultural memory: Controversy between historic preservation and heritage conservation

Historic preservation and heritage conservation are two mainstream concepts related to the sustainability and renewal of historic houses. With the aim of enhancing the sustainability of historic houses, this article criticizes the view of historic preservation that insists on preserving historic houses with their old appearances, which does not fully develop their sustainability. In contrast, the article provides support for the view of heritage conservation that aims to promote the sustainability of historic houses and related legislation. In the second and third parts, this article examines the theoretical origin of historic preservation, which emphasizes and summarizes the one-way protection of cultural memory via historic houses. In the fourth part, the article turns to heritage conservation, highlights the sustainable cycle between historic houses and cultural memory, and underlines the advantages of this sustainable cycle. In the fifth part, this article presents a sustainable approach to heritage conservation and related legal safeguards by taking the renewal of historic houses in China's Bagua Village (or “Eight Diagrams Village”) as an example. In the last part, this paper summarizes the theoretical value, practical value and limitations of this article. The findings can facilitate the UN's sustainable development of social inclusion, economic growth, and environmental protection to promote the heritage legislation and policy of present and future generations.     

Law and sustainability: The impact of the Hungarian legal structure on the sustainability of the water services

This article shows how the regulatory framework of urban water services has changed in Hungary following the change of political regime. Regarding service provisions, political, technical, environmental, and social decisions were made. The legal forms of the decisions vary. Most commonly, they take the form of legislative and/or administrative measures or contracts. The legal character of the decisions determines what kind of actors could be involved in the decision-making process, how those decisions could be controlled in a market economy and how they influence directly or indirectly the sustainability of the water supply and sanitation.     

程伦:“三心”书写物业人生

为人坦诚、工作扎实,是身边的人对辽宁省葫芦岛市山河半岛物业公司经理程伦的诚恳评价.他温文尔雅、不善张扬,但聊起物业服务和企业管理,他的眼里会闪现出光芒,娓娓道来,仿佛蕴藏着一股无形的力量.几年来,他凭借严谨务实的工作作风,以对工作的爱、对社会的爱书写着他的物业人生,他和他所率领的团队以优质的服务和良好的信誉赢得了业主的认可.     

A question of social sustainability: Urban interventions in critical neighbourhoods in Portugal and Norway

Urban interventions in deprived neighbourhoods rank high on the agenda in European countries. This article explores what aspects of targeted urban-area interventions involve and appreciate local people during the intervention process so that they become motivated to continue to take care of and develop their area afterwards. Local social sustainability stands out as a necessary prerequisite for continued upkeep of upgraded urban neighbourhoods. The analysis builds on a ‘most different approach’, a comparison of interventions in the far south (Lisbon) and north (Oslo) of Europe. The article concludes that in addition to relevant goals and progress, local support was conditioned on how goals, organization and participation were worked out and implemented.     

Analysis of the social and environmental economic sustainability in the territory of Yucatan (Mexico)

This research focuses on the state of Yucatan, Mexico, and provides evidence of unsustainable performance of the local economy: the local economic structure and income distribution widens the gap between rich and poor households. A constructive policy towards sustainable development would place greater emphasis on productive restructuring the agricultural sector, road transport and electric power generation, in designing actions of technological change and sustainable natural resource management. An exhaustive hybrid environmental social accounting matrix (ESAM) and linear multipliers models are used to analyse the interactions of the local economy with the use of resources, the environment and income distribution.     

Methylmercury and the health of indigenous peoples: a risk management challenge for physical and social sciences and for public health policy

Methylmercury in aquatic ecosystems and bio-accumulated in aquatic biota, especially fish, is a major public health concern internationally. Precautionary efforts are currently underway internationally to reduce the anthropogenic release of mercury, which in turn, over time, will reduce human exposure. However, at the present time, it is important to address the issue of management of the risks of exposure as they exist now. Of particular concern are the impacts of methylmercury on indigenous populations which depend on fish as a subsistence food source, both in remote areas of developed countries, such as Canada, and in developing countries such as Brazil. Research into these impacts over the past two or three decades has shown that, other than in very severe pollution situations such as occurred in Minamata, Japan, the direct impacts on human health are difficult to prove. On the other hand, the indirect negative effects of methylmercury on health, mediated through the disruption of lifestyle and eating patterns and the associated socio-cultural and socio-economic consequences among the affected native populations, have, in many cases, been significant. These social factors have raised serious challenges in determining practical public health policies on the issue. Policy development relating to environmental contaminants has been presented, with the problem of assessing the role of the various factors which contribute to the impact on health as a result of socio-cultural disruption. These factors include changes in diet and lifestyle due to methylmercury in the environment and its real or perceived risk. The standard physical sciences risk assessment process, based on the lowest observed adverse effects level (LOAEL) or no observed adverse effects level (NOAEL) used in defining health policies may be seen as over-simplistic theoretical extrapolations when viewed in the context of the concerns of the social sciences. Both approaches, however, have relevance to health policies that address the risks posed by environmental methylmercury. Therefore, the standard physical sciences approach of the past three decades now needs to be linked with the social sciences approach, with its focus on the indirect impacts of exposure to methylmercury, to provide a comprehensive approach to public health policy development. With this objective in mind, this paper reviews methylmercury-related data from both physical and social sciences. It attempts to draw on the findings in both disciplines to provide suggestions for an integrated approach in policy development relating to human health and human exposure to methylmercury, especially among indigenous peoples in remote areas and in developing countries. An integrated approach such as this may help to limit adverse health effects in the indigenous communities affected.