To create a sustainable city, all aspects of sustainability must be assessed, from the environmental issues, to economic considerations and the social implications of creating a sustainable place. A growing idea surrounding the concept of the sustainable city is the importance of community and ensuring that the local community plays a key role in decision-making. This is seen to be a ‘bottom up’ approach to sustainability whereby sustainability initiatives are implemented at grass roots level, involving local people. It is argued that such an approach is far more likely to be successful when implementing behaviour change ideas, e.g. recycling schemes, as giving local people a chance to voice their opinions and plan strategies for their areas results in greater participation and acceptance.
The term community is very broad but in essence it can include groups of people in the same area who share that area in their everyday lives and use the resources and facilities. People can enter and leave a community, depending on their daily lives, so employees of businesses can be seen to be part of a community while other people may be residents in that community and employees in a different community. Therefore, it is important to assess the role of businesses when trying to establish a sustainable community. Over recent years, Britain has witnessed a change in the way cities and towns are governed. There has been a shift from local government to local governance, whereby government shares power and responsibility with non-elected bodies such as businesses [1]. There is a growing trend of partnerships with the private sector and businesses taking a greater role in the governance of local areas.
It is argued that to combat the negative effects of local economic decline, which is particularly relevant in today’s economic climate, businesses are the answer to providing a long-term sustainable vision [2]. Businesses can provide a “source of expertise, funds and possible channels of influence to central government” (p.5.40), which is appealing to local councils [2]. However, there are some doubts over the role of businesses and their so-called “business agendas” in local areas. Do they really take on the best interests of a local area [2]? Will they have staying power and not just abandon an area, leaving it to fall into decline again [2]? Some argue that business influence on local economic policy or land-use planning means that other aspects of creating a more sustainable urban environment, such as social service provision, are compromised [1].
There has been a growth in Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) across England and Wales, largely in response to the growth of out-of-town shopping centres, which has often left areas in the centre of towns run-down [3]. BIDs were first seen in the United States in the early 1990s and have been attributed with turning around cities such as downtown Philadelphia [3]. In essence BIDs act to improve local areas by ensuring they are kept clean, e.g. rubbish is regularly picked up, there may be patrolling security officers which can make an area feel safer [3]. People have commented that in areas where BIDs have been implemented, they feel safer.
However, critiques of BIDs have argued that such partnerships are very much market driven and this does not always benefit the entire community [4]. Therefore is it truly sustainable? There is evidence that BIDs have reduced crime in areas where they operate, but often this crime is just displaced and this appears to be the case in Los Angeles [5]. Communities can be place-designated but their boundaries are not static, there are flows in and out, and changes in one community will affect adjacent areas. Creating a sustainable city is not just about making some areas more sustainable. To be truly sustainable the whole picture needs to be assessed. It is also important to note that for a scheme to be truly sustainable it has to be lasting. Businesses operate in a dynamic, competitive environment and their actions are often short term. If BIDs are part of the answer to create a more sustainable urban environment, we need to be sure that, if the businesses that make the investments move on, they don’t take with them the good work that has been achieved.
Businesses can definitely help in creating a more sustainable urban environment, but they must not be totally relied upon. Sustainability by its nature encompasses long-term vision and this is not always consistent with the nature of business. Whilst businesses are part of a community, they by no means speak for everyone, and we need to ensure that the entire community’s best interests are taken on board, not just those that are market driven.
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References
[1] Harding, A., Wilks-Heed, S. and Hutchins, M. (2000) Business, government and the business of urban governance, Urban Studies, 37, 5-6, 975-994.
[2] Bassett, K. (1996) Partnerships, Business Elites and Urban Politics: New Forms of Governance in an English City? Urban Studies, 33, 539-556.
[3] Cook. I. (2008) Mobilising urban policies: The policy transfer of US Business Improvement District to England and Wales, Urban Studies, 45, 773-795.
[4] Strange, I. (1997) Directing the show? Business leaders, local partnership, and economic regeneration in Sheffield. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 15, 1-17.
[5] Hoyt, L. (2005) Do Business Improvement District Organisations Make a Difference? Journal of Planning Education and Research, 25, 185-199.
