Impacts of the Sharing Economy on Urban Sustainability: The Perceptions of Municipal Governments and Sharing Organisations

Lucie Enochsson,Andrius Plepys,Oksana Mont,Yuliya Voytenko Palgan

doi:10.3390/su13084213

Abstract

By changing the institutionalised practices associated with resource distribution, the sharing economy could support sustainable urban transformations. However, its impacts on urban sustainability are unknown and contested, and key actors hold different perceptions about them. Understanding how they frame these impacts could help solve conflicts and outline what can be done to influence the development of the sharing economy in a way that fosters urban sustainability. This study explores the diversity of these frames across actors (sharing economy organisations and municipalities), segments (accommodation, bicycle, and car sharing), and cities (Amsterdam and Toronto). A framework of the impacts on urban sustainability was developed following a systematic literature review. This then guided the analysis of secondary data and 51 interviews with key actors. Results show that accommodation sharing is framed most negatively due to its impact on urban liveability. Bicycle sharing is surrounded by less conflict. Still, in Amsterdam, which has a well-functioning bicycle infrastructure, it is viewed less positively than in Toronto. Car sharing is the most positively framed segment in Amsterdam as its potentials to lower emissions align with municipal sustainability agendas. Practical insights for negotiations between sharing economy organisations and municipalities to advance urban sustainability are proposed.

Highlights

The focus was on the sustainability framings of accommodation, car, and bicycle sharing by the key actors influencing the development of the sharing economy in cities—sharing economy organisations (SEOs) and municipal governments (MGs)
The presentation of the framings is clustered under the four framing themes section presents differences and similarities in the sustainability framings of the from the research model
This paper explored the framings of SEOs and MGs in Amsterdam and Toronto in three sharing economy segments—car, bicycle, and accommodation sharing

Summary

Introduction

Cities around the world face rapid urbanisation accompanied with pressing environmental challenges, aggravating socio-economic inequalities, and emerging diseases [1]. The United Nations introduced sustainable development goal 11 with the aim to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” [2]. Researchers, urban actors and transnational municipal networks advocate for an urgent urban transformation towards sustainability [3,4,5,6,7]. A sustainable urban transformation requires that cities become more resilient and able to mitigate environmental problems, improve liveability (such as through the provision of affordable housing and efficient public transportation), maintain economic growth, promote equity and justice among citizens, and ensure a decent quality of services by supporting emerging technologies and innovations [8,9,10]

Methods

Results

Conclusion