Reimagining Sustainable Cities - by Stephen M Wheeler & Christina D Rosan (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A cutting-edge, solutions-oriented analysis of how we can reimagine cities around the world to build sustainable futures. In recent years, cities have stepped up efforts to address climate and sustainability crises. But progress has not been fast enough or gone deep enough. If communities are to thrive in the future, we need to quickly imagine and implement an entirely new approach to urban development: one that is centered on equity and rethinks social, political, and economic systems as well as urban designs. With attention to this need for structural change, Reimagining Sustainable Cities advocates for a community-informed model of racially, economically, and socially just cities and regions. Stephen M. Wheeler and Christina D. Rosan ask big-picture questions of interest to readers worldwide: How do we get to carbon neutrality? How do we adapt to a climate-changed world? How can we create affordable, inclusive, and equitable cities? While many books dwell on the analysis of problems, Reimagining Sustainable Cities prioritizes solutions-oriented thinking-surveying historical trends, providing examples of constructive action worldwide, and outlining alternative problem-solving strategies. Wheeler and Rosan use a social ecology lens and draw perspectives from multiple disciplines to rethink urban sustainability for a new era. Positive, readable, and constructive in tone, Reimagining Sustainable Cities identifies actions ranging from urban design to institutional restructuring that can bring about fundamental change and prepare us for the challenges ahead"--

Book Synopsis

A cutting-edge, solutions-oriented analysis of how we can reimagine cities around the world to build sustainable futures.

What would it take to make urban places greener, more affordable, more equitable, and healthier for everyone? In recent years, cities have stepped up efforts to address climate and sustainability crises. But progress has not been fast enough or gone deep enough. If communities are to thrive in the future, we need to quickly imagine and implement an entirely new approach to urban development: one that is centered on equity and rethinks social, political, and economic systems as well as urban designs. With attention to this need for structural change, Reimagining Sustainable Cities advocates for a community-informed model of racially, economically, and socially just cities and regions. The book aims to rethink urban sustainability for a new era.

In Reimagining Sustainable Cities, Stephen M. Wheeler and Christina D. Rosan ask big-picture questions of interest to readers worldwide: How do we get to carbon neutrality? How do we adapt to a climate-changed world? How can we create affordable, inclusive, and equitable cities? While many books dwell on the analysis of problems, Reimagining Sustainable Cities prioritizes solutions-oriented thinking--surveying historical trends, providing examples of constructive action worldwide, and outlining alternative problem-solving strategies. Wheeler and Rosan use a social ecology lens and draw perspectives from multiple disciplines. Positive, readable, and constructive in tone, Reimagining Sustainable Cities identifies actions ranging from urban design to institutional restructuring that can bring about fundamental change and prepare us for the challenges ahead.

From the Back Cover

"A refreshingly optimistic and well-argued big picture explanation of sustainable urban development and climate change clearly written for a general audience."--Richard LeGates, Professor Emeritus, San Francisco State University

"Smart cities began making big changes during the COVID-19 pandemic--this practical and visionary volume suggests how they could go much farther, focusing on their most vulnerable populations and preparing for a truly working future." -- Bill McKibben, author of Falter: Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?

"Going beyond the siloed 'topics, ' this timely book explores the intersecting and more fundamental structural changes we need in order to move towards 'social ecology'--a creative reimagination of the institutional, economic, and political structures required to make truly just and sustainable communities possible." -- Julian Agyeman, author of The Immigrant Food Nexus: Borders, Labor, and Identity in North America

"Cities urgently need to transition to net-zero, and do it equitably. Stephen Wheeler and Christina Rosan's brilliantly practical volume shows them how. This is a must-read for all urban managers." -- Karen C. Seto, Lead Author of the urban mitigation chapter for the 5th and 6th Assessment Reports of the UN IPCC

Review Quotes

"A much needed, holistically integrative, overview of sustainability strategies for designing greener, more just, resilient, adaptable and climate friendly communities."-- "Urban Studies Online"

"This book is a compendium of the many changes that will be necessary to make a sustainable and equitable future possible."-- "Journal of Urban Affairs"

"This book is an ideal companion to a wide range of readers wishing to think again about sustainable cities and stimulate change across urban areas. The narrative of positivity and optimism laid out in the context of achieving sustainability makes this book a refreshing and welcome addition to a mounting body of literature dedicated to sustainable urban action."-- "Buildings & Cities"

"Half a century on, drastic change is still needed, warn urban ecologists Stephen Wheeler and Christina Rosen in their enlightening survey of today's cities."

-- "Nature"

About the Author

Stephen M. Wheeler is a Professor in the Department of Human Ecology at the University of California, Davis. His previous books include Planning for Sustainability, The Sustainable Urban Development Reader (co-edited with Timothy Beatley), and Climate Change and Social Ecology. He is a Switzer Fellow and winner of the Dale Prize for Excellence in Urban and Regional Planning.

Christina D. Rosan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and Urban Studies at Temple University in Philadelphia. Her books include Governing the Fragmented Metropolis: Planning for Regional Sustainability, Growing a Sustainable City?: The Question of Urban Agriculture (with Hamil Pearsall), and Planning Ideas That Matter (co-edited with Bishwapriya Sanyal and Lawrence Vale).