Sustainability
That Works
by
Carla Grindle
 |
Lots of cars around town sport the "SOAR" bumper sticker. I often try to see the drivers and imagine who they are, what they do, what drives their particular interest in SOAR. One car to the next, one driver to the next, the variety is remarkable. Yet this great variety of cars and "SOAR" drivers is tiny compared to the variety of voters who will be involved as each SOAR-driven issue comes to ballot in future years. Assuming (optimistically) that SOAR passes, we must realize that on-going work toward sustainability is just beginning.
This article intends to point out examples of sustainability projects that are successfully fulfilling their goals. It is important to look at why some initiatives and models are successful. Much of the information is based in Social Work research, which is my particular background. I hope to present information and resources that the Central Coast environmental activist community perhaps has not yet seen.
Public Interest in Environmental Initiatives
Citizen concern about the environment is rising. According to Time magazine, in November 1998 there were 240 anti-sprawl ballot initiatives around the country. Some aimed to give voters veto rights over new subdivisions. Others allocated monies for open land purchases in a race against developers. Encouragingly, most of these initiatives actually passed. Yet, despite such signs of increasing public awareness, we are still in a race against both time and the unenlightened.
Habitat Destruction Syndrome
"The human race is collectively engaged in practices that damage the environment and ensure our eventual self-destruction. If we observed a few individuals engaged in such self-destruction, we would call them mentally ill. Our collective illness might be labeled ‘habitat destruction syndrome’." – Raymond M. Berger, PhD. Department of Social Work, CSU, Long Beach.
Thus labeling the syndrome in 1995, Dr. Berger called for action amongst social workers: make changes in daily behaviors, increase political involvement, switch to alternative energy sources, encourage mass transit, support sustainable agriculture. Since then, research about sustainable community projects has exploded.
What? A Government Program That Works?
Yes, the Feds are involved in sustainable community development too. Created under the current Administration, Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community (EZ/EC) programs aim toward self-sustaining, long-term development in distressed communities. There are now 33 such communities in 24 states.
To read descriptions of EZ/EC projects, go to (http://ocd.usda.gov/bench.htm). There you can also search specific topics, such as "Downtown/Business Districts" under Infrastructure, or "Agriculture" under Business Development.
An on-going, independent monitoring study is being conducted at Iowa State University (http://www.ncrcrd.iastate.edu). It has been found that the various EZ/EC designated communities consistently identify five goals for themselves:
1. Increased use of the skills, knowledge and ability of local people.
2. Strengthened relationships and communication.
3. Improved community initiative, responsibility and adaptability.
4. Sustainable, healthy ecosystems with multiple community benefits.
5. Diverse and healthy economies.
Preliminary reports indicate that as much as 75 % of the communities surveyed have successfully adopted their strategic plans and made progress toward their stated goals. Community participation in many arenas has greatly increased.
Incidentally, while you are at this Iowa State website, click on "Measuring Community Success and Sustainability." You’ll find an interactive workbook designed to help organizations define and measure results of conservation projects. The "Planning for Action" section helps identify and assign responsibility for projects. Check out the references at the end too.
Smart Growth
"In communities across the nation, there is a growing concern that current development patterns - dominated by what some call ‘sprawl’–are no longer in the long-term interest of our cities, existing suburbs, small towns, rural communities, or wilderness areas." (http://www.smartgrowth.org/index2.html). Smart Growth has been created to combat sprawl through judicious planning.
The definition of Smart Growth varies greatly region by region. In general, Smart Growth focuses on open space preservation, revitalizing center cities and older suburbs, aiming for pedestrian-oriented transit, and creating a mix of housing and commercial uses. Proponents claim a variety of achievements. For example, at a December 1998 conference in Maryland, seven reasons were given for "why... we have been so successful with this program so far."
"First, our program was balanced. Second, the mayors of our 157 municipalities were immediately supportive. Third, the proposal overcame traditional county government opposition by preserving the counties’ local decision-making authority. Fourth, environmental groups were eager to embrace a program that comprehensively dealt with land use. Fifth, the program had rural support because it protects rural settings, lifestyles and economies. Sixth, the Smart Growth approach gave Maryland businesses certainty about where the State will support growth, and where it will not. Finally, fiscal conservatives seemed to like our Smart Growth program because it held the promise of more efficient use of tax dollars to build infrastructure." (http://www.smartgrowth.org/library/Glendening.html)
The Smart Growth model is spreading nationwide. Here are some resources for further reading:
Beyond Sprawl: New Patterns of Growth to Fit the New California (http://www.greenbelt.org/pubs_merchandise/beyond_sprawl_txt.html)
Growing Smarter: Fighting Sprawl and Restoring Community in America (http://www.smartgrowth.org/library/Richard_Moe.html)
Smart Growth Planners Network Newsletter (http://www.plannersnetwork.org/138/index.htm)
The Ahwahnee Principles
Developed in 1991 by a group of leading-edge architects, the Ahwahnee Principles extensively and specifically spell out alternatives to urban sprawl for both community and regional levels. (There are hundreds of references on-line. For a basic start, go to the Center for Livable Communities (http://www.lgc.org), select "Center for Livable Communities," then Ahwahnee Principles).
The Ahwahnee Principles have begun to guide many development-related projects "with most of the activity occurring on the east and west coasts." (Corbett, Judith, 1999). Here in California, the model has influenced projects in Pasadena, San Jose, San Diego, Sacramento, Walnut Creek, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and Santa Cruz, to name just a few.
Ahwahnee-influenced projects are diverse, from the creation of an urban art corridor in what was once a decaying bus-line, to the conversion of an abandoned dairy into mixed-use retail and residential. To read about specific successful projects, go to the Center for Livable Communities link mentioned above, click on "Ahwahnee Principles" then "Awards." Here you’ll also find categories for government-adopted policies, and community and neighborhood programs. Resources are available, including, in some cases, video documentation of specific projects.
Sprawl and Sustainability on the Central Coast.
Undoubtedly both will continue. But by persistently expanding our information resource base, we can keep finding new ammunition to fight the environmental battle.
Carla Grindle
