Social Dynamics and Sustainable Urban Design

The designed, built environment is the most obvious expression of urbanization, but cities are made of people, too. Any efforts to design resilient or sustainable cities must therefore take into account the social contexts of urbanism. This chapter explores social contexts of contemporary urban systems, both the social drivers and outcomes of urbanization. It includes a discussion of links between population dynamics and urbanization, and the role of demographics in shaping the design and functioning of modern cities. This is followed by an exploration of the social contexts of vulnerability and environmental justice within cities and the opportunities for incorporating principles of sustainable urbanism, along with design and ecological understanding, for ameliorating some of the pressing problems in contemporary cities. Urban design has the power to help societies move toward a more just and sustainable future. An urban habitat that incorporates social justice and an ecologically-informed environmental justice should be a fundamental design goal.

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