Guy, S and Marvin, S 2001, 'Constructing sustainable urban futures: from models to competing pathways, impact assessment and project appraisal' , Journal of the International Association for Impact Assessment, 19 (2) , pp. 131-139.

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Abstract

This paper begins to build a conceptual framework that acknowledges the multiplicity of pathways towards different sustainable futures that often co-exist within a single city. There are three stages to the argument: the shift from the concept of a singular towards multiple models of what the sustainable city might become; the rejection of the simplistic use of models and the development of competing pathways to sustainable cities; and the recognition that a wide diversity of sustainable urban futures are likely to co-exist within a single city. The analytical framework of social constructivist theory developed here usefully demonstrates the contingent and contextual nature of technological innovation and building design.

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