Culture in Sustainable Communities: Integrating Culture in Community Sustainability Policy and Planning in Canada and Europe

Abstract

This research builds on a critical examination of Canada’s ‘four-pillar’ model of community sustainability (comprising environment responsibility, economic health, social equity, and cultural vitality), which attempts to integrate cultural considerations into overall local planning for sustainability through the development of Integrated Community Sustainability Plans (ICSPs). While this Canadian policy has been groundbreaking, further examinations of overarching policy contexts and comparison with other approaches to integrating culture into community planning were needed. Thus, this project extended prior analyses to compare Canadian practices with European approaches to integrating culture into community and city planning. The project mainly involved document analysis and interviews. It aimed to develop greater understanding of current planning practices and policies from Canada and Europe that enable ‘culturally sensitive’ sustainable community development. This paper outlines the results of preliminary analyses of findings, observations, and concerns arising from this project.