Towards the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’: An analysis of the internationalisation of eco-city policy and practice

Abstract

The global mainstreaming of urban sustainability policy, since the early 2000s, points to a new phenomenon: the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’. Its key features – based on the analysis of a census of 178 initiatives – include: the significant, global proliferation of eco-city initiatives; increased international knowledge transfer activities involving both public and private actors; the centrality of ‘carbon discourse’ guiding concepts, policy and practice; the marrying of ‘green’ with ‘smart’ technological systems; and a focus on achieving environmental innovation through economic growth. Among the implications is the need to moderate the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’ paradigm with strong local contextualisation and social sustainability measures.

Keywords:

• eco-cities
• urban sustainability
• green city
• smart city
• low-carbon city

Acknowledgements

This research was supported with a grant (‘Situating the Planning of Eco-Cities’) from the Nirman Foundation (Alexandria, USA). An earlier version of this paper was presented by S. Joss at the Dresdner Planerforum (Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development) on 15 February 2012.