:''"Eco-municipality" has a specific meaning. For a more general discussion of the sustainability of cities, see
Sustainable city
The sustainable city, eco-city, or green city is a city designed with consideration for social, economic, environmental impact (commonly referred to as the triple bottom line), and resilient habitat for existing populations, without compromisi ...
.''
An eco-municipality or eco-town is a
local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
area that has adopted
ecological
Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
and
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
values in its
charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...
. The development of eco-municipalities stems from changing systems in
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
, where more than seventy municipal governments have accepted varying principles of
sustainability
Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
in their operations as well as community-wide decision-making processes. The purpose of these policies is to increase the overall sustainability of the community.
Large scale
social movements
A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a Social issue, social or political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to resist or undo one. It is a type of Group ...
can influence both community choices and the built environment. Eco-municipalities may be one such movement. Eco-municipalities take a
systems
A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment, is described by its boundaries, structure and purpose and express ...
approach, based on sustainability principles. The eco-municipality movement is participatory, involving community members in a bottom-up approach.
The distinction between an eco-municipality and other
sustainable development
Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...
projects (such as
green building
Green building (also known as green construction or sustainable building) refers to both a structure and the application of processes that are environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's life-cycle: from planni ...
and
alternative energy
Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a Orders of magnitude (time), human timescale. It includes sources such as Solar power, sunlight, wind power, wind, the movement of Hydropo ...
) is the focus on community involvement and social transformation in a public agency, as well as the use of a
holistic
Holism () is the idea that various systems (e.g. physical, biological, social) should be viewed as wholes, not merely as a collection of parts. The term "holism" was coined by Jan Smuts in his 1926 book ''Holism and Evolution''."holism, n." OED Onl ...
systems
A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment, is described by its boundaries, structure and purpose and express ...
approach. An eco-municipality is one that recognizes that issues of sustainability are key to all decisions made by government.
History
In 1983 the
Övertorneå
Övertorneå ( fit, Matarengi; fi, Matarenki) is a locality and the seat of Övertorneå Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 1,917 inhabitants in 2010.
It is located at the shore of the Torne River, opposite to their Finnish twin ...
community of Sweden first adopted an Eco-municipality framework, followed by a formal organization in 1995 (SEKOM).
Framework
In becoming an eco-municipality, cities or towns typically adopt a resolution, based on the
Natural Step framework (or Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD)), which sets the following objectives:
* Reduce dependence upon fossil fuels.
* Reduce dependence upon synthetic chemicals.
* Reduce encroachment upon nature.
* Better meet human needs fairly and efficiently.
Municipalities adopting framework
Communities in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
,
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and Africa ranging in size from villages of 300 to cities of 700,000 have become eco-municipalities. In Sweden, over one hundred municipalities have officially become eco-municipalities. They have formed
national association of eco-municipalitiesto assist one another and work to influence national policy.
Whistler, BC
Whistler ( Lillooet/Ucwalmícwts: Cwitima, ; Squamish/Sḵwx̱wú7mesh: Sḵwiḵw, ) is a resort municipality in Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mount ...
, was awarded first place in a
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
-endorsed international competition for sustainable communities. Its long-term sustainability plan, Whistler 2020, is based on the Natural Step framework.
In
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
, there is a growing eco-municipality movement which began in the Chequamegon Bay region. As of November 2007, twelve local communities had formally adopted eco-municipality resolutions. The resolutions state the community's intention to become an eco-municipality, endorsing the Natural Step sustainability principles and framework as a guide.
[1,000 Friends of Wisconsin]
Eco-municipalities: A Model for Sustainable Communities in Wisconsin
Retrieved on: February 10, 2008.
In Sweden, more than 70 cities and towns—25 percent of all municipalities in the country—have adopted a common set of
"Sustainability Principles" and implemented these systematically throughout their municipal operations. There are now twelve eco-municipalities in the United States and the
American Planning Association has adopted sustainability objectives based on the same principles.
[James, S. (2003)]
"Eco-municipalities: Sweden and the United States: A Systems Approach to Creating Communities"
Retrieved on: 16 March 2009.
See also
*
Ecovillage
An ecovillage is a traditional or intentional community with the goal of becoming more socially, culturally, economically, and/or ecologically sustainable. An ecovillage strives to produce the least possible negative impact on the natural envi ...
*
Eco-towns
Eco-towns are a government-sponsored programme of new towns to be built in England, which are intended to achieve exemplary standards of sustainability.
In 2007, the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) announced a competition t ...
*
Green municipalism
*
Sustainable city
The sustainable city, eco-city, or green city is a city designed with consideration for social, economic, environmental impact (commonly referred to as the triple bottom line), and resilient habitat for existing populations, without compromisi ...
Notes
References
* James, S. and T. Lahti (2004). ''The Natural Step for Communities: How Cities and Towns can Change to Sustainable Practices.'' Gabriola Island, British Columbia: New Society Publishers. {{ISBN, 0-86571-491-6
External links
National Association of Swedish Eco-municipalitiesWebsite of SEKOM
Sustainable Sweden AssociationWebsite
The Natural Step Case studyTNS case study on North American Eco-municipality Network
Consulting firm working in the field.
Eco Municipalities links
page on Eco-Municipalities
policy guide on sustainability.
Sustain DaneWebsite on Dane (US)
Sustainable LawrenceWebsite on Lawrence (Canada)
Piscataqua SustainabilityWebsite on Piscataqua (Canada)
Sustainable design
Sustainable communities
Environmental planning
Landscape architecture
Urban studies and planning terminology
Environmental design
Simple living
1980s neologisms
Community building